Lee Daniels struck TV gold with his hit music industry-based soap opera Empire, which debuted on Fox in 2015. As successful as the series ended up being, though, the experience seemingly wasn’t always great for the show’s co-creator. Daniels recently called his experience working on the show “horrible.” The multi hyphenate’s brutally honest comments really turned a lot of heads after he made them weeks ago. Now, however, Daniels is seeking to provide clarity when it comes to the sentiments he shared.

The Precious director commented on his since-ended show while promoting his latest movie, The Deliverance (which features some wild lines from Glenn Close). When asked about his time working on Empire, the filmmaker said it was “absolutely the worst experience.” As he explained to The Film Stage, there was a bright spot that came with spearheading the musical dramedy, which was “that money, money, money.” The Butler helmer said that because he was able to “put [his] kids through college” that made the job worth it.

During an interview on Sirius XM’s Andy Cohen Live, Lee Daniels walked back those declarations to some degree. He explained that he doesn’t look down on the entirety of his tenure making the Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard-led show. In actuality, there was one specific aspect of the workplace that was difficult for Daniels:

Any creative who’s familiar with working within the studio system surely knows that creative decisions have to be approved by various people. For some, it can definitely be a challenge to receive notes from the various powers that be, and that seems to have been the case for the Star creator. Based on the show, though, it feels like he was ultimately able to mostly execute his vision as intended alongside series co-creator Danny Strong. (One of the show’s most shocking scenes was even drawn from Mr. Daniels’ own life.)

Empire focused on the exploits of Lucious Lyon – a former drug dealer, who eventually founded record label Empire Entertainment. Throughout the show’s six seasons, Lucious contended with the actions of his three ambitious sons, who were in line to take over the business. Simultaneously, the patriarch also had to contend with the unpredictable nature of his ex-wife, Cookie. Later in his interview with Andy Cohen (which is on YouTube), Lee Daniels expressed pride when sharing his take on the cultural impact of the show:

Despite the creative challenges he faced, it’s honestly good to hear that Lee Daniels’ entire experience crafting the show wasn’t “horrible.” He’s since served as an EP on The Wonder Years and The Ms. Pat Show. Despite those subsequent gigs and given his other experiences, I’d be surprised if Daniels ever decided to serve as showrunner on another ongoing series. For now, fans can stream all six seasons of Empire now using a Hulu subscription or by screening them for free on Tubi.

Every week, there are new and exciting 2024 releases on Netflix, and the variation of projects runs the gamut. For the past week, the No. 1 titles in the film and TV categories, respectively, have been Rebel Ridge and The Perfect Couple. However, when we took a closer look at the projects that crushed it recently, we were surprised by one movie’s viral success.

Rebel Ridge And The Perfect Couple Are Dominating Netflix Views

Before we get to that, let’s break down the kinds of numbers coming out of Rebel Ridge and The Perfect Couple.

Rebel Ridge earned 68 million hours of streaming across its first week on Netflix after critics showered the movie with a ton of praise – especially for Aaron Pierre’s charms in the action thriller. Going into its second week, it’s holding at No. 1, even as Joey King’s Uglies has just arrived. (If you enjoyed the flick, check out our interview with the Rebel Ridge director about the making of it).

On the TV side of things, The Perfect Couple was the No. 1 series on everyone’s binge list this past week. It’s a book-to-screen adaptation of an Elin Hilderbrand novel that features some big names like Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Dakota Fanning and more. So, it’s no wonder a lot of people with a Netflix subscription hit play.

In its first week, Netflix reports, the six-episode miniseries was streamed for 103 million hours. Going into the new week, The Perfect Couple remains on top of the streamer’s trending shows. It should also be noted that critics love The Perfect Couple!

But, The Deliverance Was A Sneaky Netflix Hit, Too

What not enough people probably realize or are talking about is how much of a sneaky success Lee Daniels’ The Deliverance has been on the service.

On one hand, it makes sense this was a hit given the amazing cast that features Glenn Close, Andra Day, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Mo’Nique and Omar Epps, and the horror season rolling in with fall. However, at the same time, The Deliverance has not stacked up well with critics or audiences alike. Just look at the Rotten Tomatoes scores that sit at 33% (Tomatometer) and 42% (Popcornmeter)!

Despite all the hate it’s getting, it received 41 million hours of streaming in its first week, and it was just under Rebel Ridge. Plus, it remains in the top 10 this week (though now it’s currently at No. 9 in my territory). Tons of people must have hit play blindly, either out of sheer curiosity and an ignorance for what people were saying, or to purposefully get ready to talk about Glenn Close’s shocking and viral role?

Netflix statistics continue to amaze me, because it’s interesting to see what people are watching collectively in huge numbers. For example, four million people decided to watch Aloha this past week? Did no one tell them how bland that movie is? Anyway, y’all are wild, happy streaming!

Lee Daniels started off his career in entertainment producing and directing prolific films that helped the American director make a name for himself. Then in 2015, Daniels decided to give television a whirl when his new hip-hop drama series Empire got a series order at Fox. Four years later after its final season, the Academy Award nominee gets real that his time working on the series was “horrible.”

The movies that made Lee Daniels a household name like Monster’s Ball and Precious were independent movies that gave him creative control. But as he said in his interview with The Film Stage, the filmmaker’s television start with Empire was a little experiment to see what it would be like to have to answer to studio heads. Reflecting back on that experience, Daniels admitted he found his time working on the Fox series not to be a pleasant one, and here’s why:

While Empire may not have been the best experience for Lee Daniels, I can understand him being a part of it for its six-season run as it helped cover his kids’ college education. After all, Empire truly did become a successful series. After audiences saw the chemistry between Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson in the drama film Hustle & Flow, it was bound to happen that fans would want to see that same magic again for the Fox series. At the time Empire was on air, it became one of the most-watched TV shows on Fox with rave reviews as well as award nominations and wins.

The Shadowboxer director continued to say that he had no idea that Empire would have the cultural impact that it has today. Lee Daniels put a lot of focus into developing Cookie’s character and the memorable music of the series without realizing how influential the Black drama series became. Even though the American director’s series did belong to Fox, Daniels still dared to put heartbreaking moments from his own life into the show and push the envelope to introduce complex characters and bring representation for the Black LGBTQ+ community. He admitted without Empire, there may not have been successful projects like Black Panther, Insecure, and Black-Ish.

As Lee Daniels previously mentioned, his Netflix exorcism movie The Deliverance did have the Star creator working under studio heads again. However, Daniels was faced with the challenge of adding input when working on the project. He told The Film Stage about Netflix pressuring him to build up the tension which conflicted with his own focuses. But, the Best Director nominee knew that while Deliverance was a Lee Daniels movie, it was also a Netflix movie which meant compromising. It proves the real difference between independently made projects and studio ones.

The “horrible” experience Lee Daniels had on Empire may have had to do with answering to studio heads. But, at least the accomplishments his show created had helped put his kids through college and influence other movies and TV creators going forward. If you’d like to revisit Daniels’ popular hip-hop drama series, all episodes of Empire are available on your Hulu subscription.

Spoilers ahead for The Deliverance on Netflix.

The streaming services that have been competing for years are consistently releasing new content, both TV shows and original films. Lee Daniels' new horror flick The Deliverance recently arrived for those with a Netflix subscription, and it quickly went viral. I watched The Deliverance, and I was as shocked as the internet about Glenn Close's role.

Theres a few things to know about The Deliverance, chief among them that the legendary Glenn Close is swinging hard as Alberta Jackson. She plays the mother of a Black woman, seen doing a sew in one scene, and getting truly outrageous lines of dialogue once she's possessed later in the film. One line of dialogue particularly went viral on Twitter, with folks reacting to Close saying something so out of character, which would have otherwise been wildly offensive coming out of her mouth. Check out one such reaction below:

Yes, you heard that right. This immediately starting blowing up on social media. And I also couldn't believe what I was seeing and hearing, which only made me lean in closer when watching the horror flick. So while The Deliverance might not be considered one of Glenn Close's best movies, she once again brought a fully realized performance that's made its impact on the pop culture landscape.

With The Deliverance, Oscar-nominated filmmaker Lee Daniels put his own spin on one of the best horror movies of all time: The Exorcist. This story focuses on the Jackson family in Indiana, who start to experience supernatural frights upon moving into a new home. Protagonists Ebony (played by Golden Globe-winning actress Andra Day) has a history of incarceration and alcoholism, making her a complicated but captivating final girl.

While Day is riveting while leading the film, Glenn Close's character is the most viral thing to come out of The Deliverance. There have been strong reactions to her lines in the film, as well as seeing her as more of a floozy character. Another scene that quickly started going viral on social media is when Close is shown smoking a cigarette and sewing in a wig to her daughter's hair. One such tweet reads:

Of course, no pop culture moment happens without some memes popping up online. Close's performance in The Deliverance is no exception in this regard, as it stands in such stark juxtaposition to the way the 77 year-old icon typically carries herself. She's been compared to a number of meme-able figures of the internet, including one clip that's been going around for years now. As another tweet shared:

At the time of writing this story, The Deliverance is the #1 movie on Netflix in the US, so it's safe to say that plenty more folks are getting a glimpse at Glenn Close's already iconic performance as Alberta Jackson. And as such, Lee Daniels has cemented himself as a memorable horror director, in addition to his already long resume of hits on TV and film. And I'd love for him to bring us another one in the future.

The Deliverance is streaming now on Netflix. Check the 2025 movie release dates to plan your movies for next year.

Lee Daniels has built a career on telling stories built around Black communities, from Precious to The Butler to the game-changing TV drama Empire, and his latest feature effort The Deliverance perhaps surprisingly shares a spot on both the slate of upcoming horror movies and upcoming Netflix movies. You won’t see former Jamal Lyon portrayer Jussie Smollett amongst those cast members, but the Oscar-nominated director would apparently be open to working with the controversial actor again.

Daniels popped by the Breakfast Club radio show to promote his new movie with Charlamagne tha God and Jess Hilarious, and when asked what their relationship is like now, five years after Smollet’s hate crime claims were revealed to be fabricated, leading to his arrest for filing false charges. Rather than dodging the question, the director shared his honest thoughts about the situation, saying:

Jussie Smollett made waves as a young actor with The Mighty Ducks and the sitcom On Our Own, but it was Lee Daniels and Empire that helped turn him into a star celebrity with a burgeoning music career. Of course, much of that success was thrown out the window in the wake of Smollett’s arrest and ensuing legal issues, with Jamal being fired from Empire at the tail end of its fifth season.

When asked if he would consider working with Smollett again, Lee Daniels was certainly open to the idea, to the point that he would make that casting decision himself. As he put it:

While Charlamagne tha God didn’t talk too much about his own opinions of Smollett in the moment, the host pointed out that his questions to the filmmaker were more about Hollywood rarely giving scandalized Black actors a second chance when compared to white actors. He and Jess gave Daniels props for being an inspiration to others in that way.

At the moment, Smollett isn’t exactly in hiding or anything. He returned to a subdued spotlight in 2022 with his directorial debut B-Boy Blues, which he also wrote, and and promoted at the BET Awards while talking about attempting a comeback.

Smollet’s latest project, which he directed and co-wrote with Jerrell Chesney, is the drama The Lost Holliday. He got back in front of the camera for this one, as he co-stars opposite fellow Empire vet Vivica A. Fox. It’s set to hit the 2024 movie schedule in a limited capacity on September 27.

Meanwhile, Lee Daniels’ The Deliverance is in its own limited run, and will be available to stream with a Netflix subscription on Thursday, August 30.

Queer cinema can be defined as movies with great LGBTQ+ characters or films that bring a different point of view outside of what you’d see in a mainstream movie. There are so many directors out there who have created queer films that are top-ranked on Rotten Tomatoes, introducing audiences not only to queer characters but different ways of life in general. Here are seven examples of LGBTQ+ directors who have shaped queer cinema into what it is today.

John Waters

American filmmaker John Waters broke the mold introducing to audiences taboo subjects that were unapologetic and in your face. In one of drag queen legend Divine’s best performances, Female Trouble, he has its female protagonist committing disturbing crimes that will leave you horrified. Waters also does a great job celebrating life’s absurd and grotesque moments in his campy, over-the-top style. Pink Flamingos, also starring Divine, accomplished this in the final scene when “the filthiest person alive” scoops up dog feces and eats it shamelessly.

Another remarkable quality of John Waters was his ability to highlight outsiders, rebels, and misfits in his movies. For example, Divine confidently embraces his body even though he doesn’t have a typical Hollywood slim build. In the movie that eventually turned into a Broadway musical, Hairspray, teenage Tracy Turnblad doesn’t fit traditional beauty standards. However, she still remains a confident and talented person. Waters’ cult classics may not always be easy to watch, but they offer a unique perspective on society that challenges the conventional and celebrates the provocative.

Lee Daniels

Oscar-nominated director Lee Daniels contributed to queer cinema by presenting a more subtle portrayal of queer experiences, especially with Black characters. One of cinema’s most impactful fictional teachers, Ms. Blu Rain in Precious, is a lesbian. But, her support for Precious to do well in school and block out the noise of her rough home life defines the character more than her sexuality does.

Fox’s hip-hop drama, Empire, broke ground by having one of the main characters, Jamal, be a gay Black man for its broad audience. We also see the talented singer face issues of homophobia with some shocking scenes having happened to Lee Daniels during his childhood in real life, like getting thrown in the trash for being gay. Through Daniels' characters, queer audiences can watch and feel seen.

Todd Haynes

The 1950s may have been an era where the visibility of the LGBTQ+ community was limited, but it doesn’t mean they didn’t exist. While Todd Haynes tackled the taboo subject of scandalous age-gap relationships in one of 2023's best movies, May December, it was his period films set in the '50s that initially launched his reputation in queer cinema. In Far From Heaven, Dennis Quaid’s character, Frank Whitaker, was a gay man during an unacceptable time. This character reflected the lives of closeted men of that era having secret affairs, visiting underground gay bars, and even taking part in therapy to “cure” his homosexuality.

Haynes’ best quality is staying away from the clichés and tragic endings commonly found in queer films. One of the best lesbian film couples, Carol and Therese in Carol, deal with the turmoil of keeping their affair a secret among an unaccepting crowd. However, Haynes had his movie end with a message of hope which, in turn, can inspire queer audiences who watch.

Pedro Almodóvar

Spanish filmmaker and screenwriter Pedro Almodóvar gave a genuine, sympathetic portrayal of the LGBTQ+ community in Spanish society. In All About My Mother, the main character, Manuela, has a good friendship with transgender sex worker Agrado. We’re also introduced to another transgender character, Lola, who was the father of Manuela’s son before transitioning. Through these characters, we break away from stereotypes and get a deep exploration of who they are as people.

Almodóvar isn’t afraid to tackle forbidden subjects with emotional honesty, such as in the dark romantic comedy Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! With a mix of dark humor, melodrama, and psychological tension, audiences see the subject of Stockholm Syndrome come into the relationship of Ricky and Marina. Instead of this theme being told in a judgmental way, it’s shown with sympathy. 

Gus Van Sant

The New Queer Cinema movement of the 1990s was greatly contributed to by LGBTQ+ director Gus Van Sant. He brought queer-themed films to independent cinema like My Own Private Idaho. Loosely based on the Shakespeare plays in the Henriad, the indie adventure drama has River Phoenix’s character of Mike as a gay man trying to find his way through life. Van Sant also does a great job spotlighting underrepresented communities, like skateboarders, in Paranoid Park. We delve into a teenage boarder’s inner turmoil after accidentally killing a guard.

Van Sant is also known for bringing history to the big screen, whether it’s real-life LGBTQ+ figures like Harvey Milk or quadriplegic cartoonist John Callahan. He also gives his own loose interpretations of real events like the Columbine High School shooting in Elephant and his idea of Kurt Cobain’s final moments in Last Days. 

The queer experience is also mirrored through the Oscar-winning film, Good Will Hunting. Will Hunting may not be a queer man, but his journey of self-discovery and ultimate path of self-acceptance are all themes found in the LGBTQ+ community.

Cheryl Dunye

Liberian-American filmmaker Cheryl Dunye has significantly crafted Black movies you should watch for Pride Month. One of her most well-known would be The Watermelon Woman, where the subjects of race, sexuality, and gender are presented. You can argue that Dunye invented a genre of her own called “Dunyementary” where a movie is established as a documentary with fictional elements. The comedy-drama’s fictional subject in Black actress Fae Richards symbolizes the erasing of classic Black lesbians from cinema.

Dunye brilliantly brought to the screen the real stories of queer Black women. In the TV movie, Stranger Inside, her crime-drama has a juvenile delinquent, Treasure, trying to find her biological mother in the prison system. All the while, we explore Treasure's relationships with other female inmates placed within the prison community. 

Jennie Livingston

The only full-length movie Jennie Livingston created was the documentary, Paris is Burning, which was both raw and groundbreaking. In a movie that celebrates drag performers, Livingston’s documentary explores the diverse communities that exist within the realm of NYC's ball culture of the 1980s. 

The identities of queer characters were brought forth to mainstream audiences through the creative expressions of dance, big drag costumes, and impressive performances. Highlighting the genuine stories of a marginalized group, Livingston triumphantly presented visibility and understanding of queer lives.

These seven LGBTQ+ directors created masterpiece films that displayed diverse narratives to a large, theater-going audience. With their unique perspectives and creativity, talented filmmakers helped make queer cinema widespread and celebrated. Experiences of the LGBTQ+ were reflected through queer characters or points of view different from anything we’ve ever seen before. Check out our streaming schedule to see if any of these artists’ well-known movies are on your streaming services.

Over the years, Lee Daniels has directed Academy Award-nominated films like The United States vs. Billie Holiday and Precious, as well as created a list of TV shows that includes Empire and Star, all of which allow the writer/director/producer to tell unique stories with incredible actors. And, while Daniels has focused on biographies and character-driven dramas in the past, he’ll soon try his hand at a new variant of his signature style by adding horror to the equation.

At some point in the near future, Daniels will release The Deliverance, a star-studded fright fest centering on a family pushed to their limits by a demonic entity. If this is the first you’re hearing about the upcoming horror movie, don’t worry, because we’re about to break it all down now. Here are six things, including the cast, basic premise, and other things we know about The Deliverance.

The Deliverance Will Be A Netflix Exclusive

When The Deliverance is released, you won’t be seeing it on the big screen at your local cineplex. In fact, the only way to watch the upcoming movie is by having a Netflix subscription, because the popular streaming service has acquired the exclusive rights to Lee Daniels’ next project. In January 2022, when the movie still didn’t even have a name, Variety reported that Netflix won a competitive bidding war to obtain the film, beating out the likes of MGM and Miramax for the honors.

There is no word on exactly when The Deliverance will be eligible for the Netflix Top 10, but expect to hear more on the movie in the months to come.

Andra Day, Glenn Close, And Caleb McLaughlin Lead The Deliverance Cast

Lee Daniels is no stranger when it comes to working with large ensemble casts, considering that movies like Lee Daniels’ The Butler featured names like Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, Cuba Gooding Jr., Robin Williams, John Cusack, and Alan Rickman, to name a few. But still, The Deliverance will be quite an undertaking with its large gathering of stars.

Golden Globe and Grammy winner Andra Day, the legendary Glenn Close, and Stranger Things mainstay Caleb McLaughlin are just three of the names who are set to appear on The Deliverance cast. Others, according to Deadline, include Omar Epps, Miss Lawrence, Anthony B. Jenkins, Aunjanue Ellis, Tasha Smith, Demi Singleton, and Mo’Nique. This will be the first time Mo’Nique and Daniels have worked together since the comedian and actress accused the producer of “blackballing” her following the release of Precious, according to EW.

The Deliverance Centers On A Mother Attempting To Protect Her Family From A Demonic Presence

When The Deliverance eventually premieres, it will combine elements of horror, drama, and spirituality to tell a riveting story about a mother’s attempt to protect her family from a demonic presence. According to Netflix, the movie centers on single mother Ebony Jackson (Andra Day) as she attempts to make a fresh start in a new home with her children. But, not long after settling in, the family is toyed with and tormented by a malignant entity that forces Ebony to enter a battle for her life, her family, and her faith.

Besides the basic elements, specifics about the story have yet to be revealed as of this writing, but this has all the characteristics of a great exorcism story like so many others in the past.

The Movie Is Based On The Experiences Of Latoya Ammons

There has long been a history of horror movies based on true stories, and The Deliverance will soon be yet another addition to the list that includes A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Conjuring, and another demonic-based fright fest, The Exorcist. According to Deadline, Lee Daniels upcoming movie is based on the story of Latoya Ammons, a mother of three in Gary, Indiana, who experienced a series of traumatic experiences in her home after moving there in November 2011.

The Indianapolis Star covered the story in great detail in the years following the demonic presence, and reported on the various experiences the Ammons family endured. This included Ammon’s young son walking backwards up a wall, her daughter levitating in the middle of the night, and more. At one point, the Gary Police Department and Department of Child Services even began to investigate the occurrences before an exorcist was brought in to rid the home of the presence.

The Deliverance Was Penned By David Coggeshall, Elijah Bynum, Thomas Westfall, And Lee Daniels

The writing team responsible for adapting the harrowing tale of Latoya Ammons and her family into The Deliverance is made up of a group of writers who have a great deal of combined experience in horror movies as well as working with Lee Daniels. According to The Hollywood Reporter, this includes David Coggeshall, Elijah Bynum, Thomas Westfall, and Daniels himself.

In the past, Coggeshall has written the “based on a true story” horror film, The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia, and an episode of the Prime Video original series, Lore, as well as the 2022 Orphan prequel. Bynum’s previous credits include the TV series, One Dollar, and the 2017 Timothée Chalamet vehicle, Hot Summer Nights. Westfall has worked with Daniels on everything from The Paperboy to Empire.

Production On The Deliverance Was Ongoing In Summer 2022

No release date has been announced for The Deliverance at this point, but the movie was in active production as of summer 2022. In late July, Glenn Close posted a brief (and silent) video to her Instagram page along with a caption saying she was in her final week of shooting. In addition to calling Lee Daniels a “creative powerhouse,” Close said the production was a “fabulous experience.” 

There is no word on when principal photography will wrap on The Deliverance, but if Close was just about to finish shooting in late July 2022, things should be concluding sooner rather than later.

Be on the lookout for more about The Deliverance in the months to come, but in the meantime, check out all the 2022 Netflix movies that should hold you over while you wait.

Whenever Glenn Close’s name appears, the project she is attached to is bound to be a big deal. It seems the eight-time Oscar nominee has found a great follow-up to 2021’s acclaimed Apple TV flick Swan Song. She has a Stranger Things star along for the ride instead of Mahershala Ali this time. But the real cherry on top is the huge sum of money Netflix shelled out to become the upcoming film’s distributor.

Deadline reported a source close to the streamer claimed it paid out $65 million to have Lee Daniels' untitled horror thriller be part of its original films lineup. Netflix was the victor in acquiring the rights as MGM and Miramax allegedly had their sights on the genre film as well. But the reported bidding war was worth it as the horror flick boasts an impressive cast of A-listers and rising stars. Along with Swan Song’s Glenn Close, the film will star Strange Things’ Caleb McLaughlin, Andra Day, Octavia Spencer, Rob Morgan and King Richard’s Aunjanue Ellis.

As with most of his projects, Daniels will direct and produce the thriller based on a script he rewrote. In addition to the United States vs. Billie Holiday filmmaker, Tucker Tooley and Pam Williams will produce the untitled film. Turn Left Productions’ Todd Crites and Jackson Nguyen will serve as producers with Greg Renker and Gregoire Gensollen attached as executive producers.

The exorcism thriller is inspired by coverage from the Indianapolis Star about Latoya Ammons, a single mother, and her three children living in a haunted house in Gary, IN. Multiple accounts from the local police, the area hospital, and the Department of Child Services backed up the mother’s claims. Of course, the film will have a fictional take on the story.

For the film adaptation, Andra Day will play the mother with Glenn Close playing her character’s mother. It will be Day and Lee Daniels’ second collaboration since her Oscar-nominated turn as jazz legend Billie Holiday in 2020’s The United States vs. Billie Holiday. Caleb McLaughlin is set to play one of Day’s children while Rob Morgan and Octavia Spencer portray the mother’s boyfriend and the clergy member who helps Day’s character deal with her haunted home, respectively. It is currently unknown what role Aunjanue Ellis will play in the film. So, all the elements are in place to make this potential horror classic.

The recount has been in the works since 2014 when the story first broke. Tucker Tooley has held onto the rights as Orphan: First Kill scribe Dave Coggeshall and Elijah Bynum wrote separate drafts before Daniels boarded the project. Now with Daniels at the helm, the film is heading from developmental hell into production.

The yet-titled film is expected to begin production around the middle of 2022. It is currently unknown when the exorcism thriller will premiere on Netflix. If you want to keep with any updates regarding the Netflix thriller, stay tuned to CinemaBlend for any new developments.

When it comes to filmmaking, every director has their pet peeves about their process. For Lee Daniels, making sure the lighting for his cast is right is his. This became a major issue while filming the Oscar-nominated film Precious. Daniels wasn’t too pleased about how his crew treated the Black cast members. The director recalled the time he had to fire his crew from the set for bad lighting.

When it comes to Hollywood, Lee Daniels isn't known for mincing words. And working on Precious was a special moment for him as a filmmaker. That’s why bad lighting was not acceptable to him. The Precious director said about having to let the Oscar-nominated film’s first director of photography:

Lighting on sets for Black actors have been an issue in Hollywood for many years. In respect to that issue, Lee Daniels had the best decision for him and his cast. If the lighting hadn’t been correct, Daniels would’ve suffered criticism for the error. As the filmmaker he had to advocate for himself and the cast. The original crew’s reported attitude toward Daniels spoke to how Hollywood views Black talent and their creativity. But after firing his original production crew, The U.S. vs. Billie Holiday director went on a search to remedy the situation.

To fight the indifference of his original production crew, Lee Daniels had a course correction for the bumpy beginnings. He admitted to seeking out a new director of photography to see his vision all the way through. Daniels revealed to Entertainment Weekly who he recruited to correct the lighting issue.

Hiring The Bodyguard's director of photography was seemingly a good move for Lee Daniels. Precious star Gabourey Sidibe also backed up Daniels’ effort. She confirmed the original dailies did have her looking green. Sidibe admitted it took the original crew an hour to light her properly. But in the end, Daniels pulled the right move to fire the original production. It all worked out in the end as Precious was a well-received, award-winning film. Viewers can now look at the acclaimed drama on Prime Video.

It goes without saying that we’re currently living in an era of reboots and remakes. This past decade alone has seen new variations of numerous classic shows, ranging from Full House and Roseanne to Hawaii Five-O and MacGyver. Now, another classic show is preparing to join those revamped/rebooted ranks -- The Wonder Years. The mid-’80s/early ‘90s coming-of-age show is being retooled with a predominantly Black cast and was recently ordered to series at ABC. Now, one of the show’s new leads, Psych alum Dulé Hill, is sharing some thoughts following news of the series order

Shortly after news of The Wonder Years’ big step at ABC, Dulé Hill took to Instagram to share some thoughts. The gravity of the moment was not lost on the actor and his brief, yet sweet, sentiments summed up things perfectly:

Dulé Hill seems more than excited to be moving forward with the show, and it’s not hard to see why. Not only does he get to play a part in bringing back one of television’s most beloved shows, but he also gets to do it alongside talented creatives. And the premise is one that is sure to resonate with viewers.

This iteration of The Wonder Years centers on the Williamses, a middle-class Black family living in Montgomery, Alabama during the late 1960s. The show will mostly be told from the perspective of imaginative 12-year-old Dean Williams (Elisha “EJ” Williams), as his older self (Don Cheadle) narrates, reflecting on the humorous and defining moments of his youth. Dulé Hill plays Williams family patriarch, Bill, while Saycon Sengbloh plays his wife, Lillian, and Laura Kariuki plays their daughter and Dean’s older sister, Kim. You can check out the first look at the cast down below:

Behind the scenes, Saladin Patterson (Psych, The Bernie Mac Show, and The Last OG) serves as writer and executive producer. Empire creator Lee Daniels executive produces alongside Marc Velez under the Lee Daniels Entertainment banner. Wonder Years alum Fred Savage is also an executive producer and directed the pilot.

The fact that ABC is interested in bringing back The Wonder Years isn’t surprising when you consider that the original show was highly successful during its six-season run. While we’ve yet to see any actual footage from the new show, the first images indicate that the revamp is going for the same vintage aesthetic of the original.

The Wonder Years is considered by many to be one of the greatest television shows ever made, so the cast and crew have a lot to live up to. But with capable artists both in front of and behind the camera, the show has the tools to succeed. We’ll see if Dulé Hill and his collaborators can make a splash during this upcoming TV season.

Even though it has been nearly 30 years since the last time we heard Joe Cocker belt out the opening lyrics of The Wonder Years’ title sequence, the coming-of-age story of a young Kevin Arnold is just as popular now as ever before. First there was the show’s run on Nick-at-Nite in the late ‘90s, then its arrival on Netflix and other streaming services, and now there will soon be a new version of the show with a new setting, new characters, but, hopefully, the same charm that made the original so beloved. The Wonder Years reboot, with its new cast and setting will hopefully capture the same charm of the original.

And, even though The Wonder Years reboot has only received a pilot order as of right now, the potential series seems to have a lot going for it. From its outstanding cast to the number of figures from the original series who are involved with this latest iteration, it seems like The Wonder Years is more than a grab at an old hit, and actually has something to say.

The Wonder Years Reboot Will Follow A Black Middle-Class Family In 1960s Alabama

When you first see the words The Wonder Years reboot, it’s safe to say that a chill runs down your spine in fear of ABC tarnishing the name of a series it cancelled decades ago. But, fear not, as the new version of the timeless classic won’t be set in a different time period or avoid a lot of the same issues addressed back in the day.

In July 2020, The Hollywood Reporter revealed The Wonder Years reboot will once again be set in late 1960s America, but instead of following a suburban white family, the show will follow a Black middle-class family in Montgomery, Alabama. You may remember that Alabama, Montgomery especially, was at the center of the civil rights movement and served as a backdrop to several of the decades’ most historic moments.

Elisha “EJ” Williams Will Lead As Dean Williams, The Reboot’s Version Of Kevin Arnold

If The Wonder Years reboot clears the pilot stage and receives a full series order, Elisha “EJ” Williams will become this generation’s Kevin Arnold. The casting was announced in March 2021 with Deadline reporting that Williams, who has appeared in Nickelodeon’s Henry Danger and Danger Force, will portray Dean Williams, an inquisitive and hopeful 12 year old determined to make his mark on the world around him. Considering the show is set in one of the most turbulent times in American history, young Dean will be given plenty of opportunities to rise up to the occasion.

In The Dark Star Saycon Sengbloh Will Serve As The Williams Family Matriarch On The Wonder Years

The Tony Award-nominated (Eclipsed) actress and In The Dark star, Saycon Sengbloh, will be taking on the role of Lillian Williams, the matriarch of the family at the center of The Wonder Years reboot. When the casting was announced in March 2021, Variety described Sengbloh’s character as sharp as a tack, confident, kind, and perceptive, along with having a good sense of humor. The full-time accountant, wife, and mother is the very backbone and driving force of the Williams family, who helps guide her husband and children through the insanity of 1960s America.

Psych Alum Dulé Hill Has Been Cast As Bill Williams, Dean’s Outspoken Musician Father

The Wonder Years reboot kept the momentum going throughout March 2021 with the announcement that Psych star Dulé Hill had joined the cast as Bill Williams, the musician father of series lead, Dean. When revealing the casting, Deadline described the elder Williams as a music professor by day and funk musician by night. The cool and composed figure will being a driving force in his family’s push to “be cool” as well as lead his kids and neighborhood to be as self-sufficient as possible.

That same report also announced that Black Lightning newcomer Laura Kariuki, who plays JJ in the final season of The CW’s superhero series, will portray Kim Williams, Dean’s older sister.

Lee Daniels And Fred Savage Are Executive Producers On The Wonder Years Reboot

If The Wonder Years reboot is picked up following the completion of the pilot (more on that later), the series will have two big names serving as executive producers. According to a July 2020 USA Today article on the project, Empire creator Lee Daniels, who recently directed Andra Day in her Golden Globe winning performance in The United States vs. Billie Holiday, will be helping run the show, along with someone with ties to the original series.

That person? None other than Fred Savage, who, following a successful run as a child actor, began to step behind the camera with shows like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Modern Family, and The Goldbergs. The good news doesn’t stop for the former Kevin Arnold there…

Fred Savage Is Also Set To Direct The Wonder Years Reboot Pilot

In addition to serving as an executive producer, Fred Savage will also be serving as the director for The Wonder Years reboot pilot, bringing things full circle, per The Hollywood Reporter. Even though Savage had appeared in The Princess Bride and The Twilight Zone by the time he was cast in the original run of The Wonder Years, he will forever be known as Kevin Arnold to a large part of the population. In addition to the previously mentioned directorial efforts by the former child star, Savage has also sat behind the camera on shows like 2 Broke Girls, Best Friends Forever, and The Conners.

The Big Bang Theory Producer Saladin K. Patterson Wrote The Pilot’s Script

Speaking of successful sitcoms of the 21st Century… Saladin K. Patterson, a writer and co-producer of shows like The Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men, and Psych, penned the script for the soon-to-be-shot pilot for The Wonder Years reboot. Patterson, who also worked on The Bernie Mac Show and Frasier earlier in his career, will serve as one of the show’s executive producers in addition to serving as a writer. Patterson was reportedly part of the group that initially approached ABC with the idea of rebooting the series, per The Hollywood Reporter.

The Wonder Years Pilot Will Be Shot In Spring 2021

It is still not yet known when ABC will make a decision on picking up The Wonder Years reboot for a full series, but we should know soon enough, as production on the pilot is slated to get underway at some point in Spring 2021, per Deadline. In the meantime, there’s never been a better time to go back and watch the original series to bring back all those old memories.

Watch The Wonder Years on Hulu.

There is still some time before we know whether or not The Wonder Years reboot will end up on the 2021 TV schedule, but considering all the great shows coming to television screens (and streaming services) these next few months, there’s plenty to hold you over.

For seventeen years, comic book fans were never left wanting when it came to Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. The actor played the character in a plethora of films, whether it be in ensemble X-Men films or solo movies that focused solely on his clawed mutant. With this, a number of directors got their chance to put their own spin on Wolverine, and another filmmaker almost did as well. As it turns out, Jackman once convinced The United States vs. Billie Holiday’s Lee Daniels to pitch a Wolverine film, and Daniels recently recalled how the experience went down.

Lee Daniels has been in the entertainment industry for a while, but it wasn’t until he directed 2009’s Precious that he gained national recognition. The director recently recalled that he got plenty of calls from actors following the film’s success, and this list apparently included Hugh Jackman. The Australian actor asked Daniels to pitch a Wolverine film to Fox, and the filmmaker ended up meeting with the execs. Unfortunately, it didn’t exactly go the way Daniels or Jackman would have probably imagined:

The story Lee Daniels recently recalled to Collider is probably something any filmmaker dreads. It’s easy to imagine that pitch meetings can be difficult, especially when you’re dealing with massive IPs like Wolverine or the X-Men. Thankfully, it doesn’t sound like Daniels is at all bitter about the experience, as he’s still friendly with Hugh Jackman.

Based on the timeframe within Lee Daniels’ story, it’s possible Hugh Jackman was calling him about a pitch for the follow-up to 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine. The next movie in that series would ultimately be The Wolverine, which was directed by James Mangold. The film would receive mostly positive reviews and perform well at the box office. With this, Mangold would also go on to direct the 2017 sequel, Logan.

As of right now, Lee Daniels still hasn’t ventured into the superhero genre and, while he may be confused as to why he would be sought out for Wolverine, it’s not crazy to think he could helm one of the massive films. Directors who’ve helmed smaller films are indeed capable of tackling larger movies. Marvel Studios, in particular, has proven this notion by tapping indie directors for many of their productions.

Personally, I’d love to hear what Lee Daniels envisioned for a Wolverine movie, though the filmmaker may not be able to share specifics. What can be said is that based on Daniels’ distinct style of filmmaking, the movie probably would have been unlike anything fans have seen from the iconic character, which is probably what Hugh Jackman was thinking when he hit him up.

You can stream Lee Daniels’ latest film, The United States vs. Billie Holiday, on Hulu.

The biographical drama from Lee Daniels, The United States vs. Billie Holiday, features a stand-out performance by Andra Day. This is the singer-songwriter’s first major film role and it earned her the Golden Globe for Best Performance By An Actress In A Motion Picture, Drama. So Day was certainly the right choice for the film’s Billie Holiday, but it turns out Lee Daniels originally didn’t want her to audition.

Prior to the release of The United States vs. Billie Holiday, Hulu aired A Conversation with Oprah Winfrey, Lee Daniels, Andra Day, Suzan Lori-Parks & Trevante Rhodes. Viewers were treated to a deep conversation around the story, preparation, and impact of the film depicting the life of Billie Holiday, moderated by Oprah herself, and also a great story about how Andra Day was cast in the titular role. Here is what director Lee Daniels shared about casting his lead:

Wow, talk about a match made in Heaven! From not wanting her to audition to knowing the role was hers, no question about it, it sounds like Lee Daniels put Andra Day through the wringer to book this role and it paid off for both of them. Day put 110% into capturing the essence of Billie Holiday, from meeting with addicts to fully understand Holiday’s addictions to drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes, and even studying the differences between Holiday’s sound when performing live versus spending time with friends in the studio. Check out this clip from the film:

Didn’t that performance blow you away? The likeness is uncanny and the talent is off the charts. Andra Day is stunning and authentic in every scene, and Billie Holiday’s story couldn’t be more timely. On multiple fronts, the film is educational and a great conversation piece.

The United States vs. Billie Holiday is now streaming on Hulu. CinemaBlend also has all of Hulu’s March releases handy so you can plan all your movie nights and binge-watching sessions. Happy streaming!

Just about every filmmaker hopes their movie will stand up to the test of time. Even when creating something that covers current events, it’s often done in a way that will make the story feel timeless for years to come. For Lee Daniels, his latest film is timely due to its subject matter hitting home with American history repeating itself. Daniels shared why Hulu’s The United States vs. Billie Holiday will still be timely in 40 years.

The United States vs. Billie Holiday is a biographical drama telling the story of Billie Holiday, a Black jazz singer who struggled with addiction and became the target of a sting operation by the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. The bureau used Holiday’s addiction to stop her from singing “Strange Fruit,” a song about lynching. With the film being released a year after the Emmet Till Antilynching Act passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, director Lee Daniels shared with CinemaBlend the following:

It seems sad to think a story as tragic as The United States vs. Billie Holiday would still be timely in 40 years, but Lee Daniels makes a strong point about doing the work. Billie Holiday was very passionate about her beliefs, as seen in the film, and worked to make sure she was not silenced. She was not trying to break the rules or be difficult, but truly stand up for what she believed in and sing a song she felt had an important message for people to hear. Check out the clip below from the film:

Singer/songwriter and now Golden Globe winner Andra Day took on the part of Billie Holiday as her first lead acting role, and Lee Daniels could not have found someone better. Day captures the voice, mannerisms, and essence of Holiday like an expert. She was clearly dedicated to the role and doing Holiday’s life justice. The United States vs. Billie Holiday is now streaming on Hulu.

Every biopic trying to capture the life of an individual faces the exact same inherent problem: an individual’s life doesn’t play out like a traditional story. Awareness of this frequently leads filmmakers to go the route of identifying and playing out a meaningful event that encapsulates who a person was, but every so often there are movies that aim to just try and squeeze a whole existence into 120 or so minutes. The great risk, naturally, is creating what functions less like a narrative, and more like a clip show with a story strung through it.

This is describing a general circumstance, but it’s also an apt description of the flaws in Lee Daniels’ The United States vs. Billie Holiday.

Armed with a non-linear structure and a goal to explore multiple decades in the life of a massively influential figure, the new film winds up being bizarrely scattershot, not only in its storytelling, but also in its style. The movie has the great fortune of being anchored by Andra Day’s brilliant lead performance, who moves the audience capturing the pain and passion of the titular legendary singer, but the biopic is so all over the place that it’s never able to create any flow or consistent pacing.

As explained in text at the start of the film, the great center of conflict in The United States vs. Billie Holiday is the song “Strange Fruit,” a part of her repertoire recorded in 1939 that’s viewed as incredibly controversial due to its overt references to the practice of lynching in the South. Her performances stir up debate that the FBI – and in particular Federal Bureau of Narcotics Commissioner Harry Anslinger (Garrett Hedlund) – wants shut down immediately, and thus a target is put on the singer’s back.

What ends up aiding the feds in their pursuit of Holiday is that she is a heroin addict, and a drug bust winds up landing her in prison for a year. Following her release, however, she has a massive comeback concert as Carnegie Hall, and for the rest of her life she continues to sing “Strange Fruit” in defiance of those who wish to silence her – and while also continuing to battle her vice-like drug habit.

The United States vs. Billie Holiday winds up being all over the place trying to capture every narrative thread.

On paper that plot description may seem straight forward, but that’s because it is a massively streamlined version of what the movie is. Amidst the controversy involving “Strange Fruit” and the law is a subplot involving young FBI agent Jimmy Fletcher (Trevante Rhodes), who goes from busting Billie Holiday to becoming her lover. But he’s not the only romantic interest established, as the feature also chronicles her time with actress Tallulah Bankhead (Natasha Lyonne), and her series of abusive relationships with men like James Monroe (Erik LaRay Harvey), John Levy (Tone Bell), and Louis McKay (Rob Morgan). And there’s a randomly included framing device involving a radio interview with Reginald Lord Devine (Leslie Jordan). And there’s also full performances of songs included so that the audience gets a true sense of Holiday’s talent, and even a hallucinatory journey that takes us back to her childhood. All of this unfolds with arbitrary jumps through time to moments in Holiday’s life that the film thinks are significant. It’s all over the place.

Ultimately The United States vs. Billie Holiday is a movie that comes together completely without structure, and while that’s helpful in terms of just highlighting some of the biggest moments in the eponymous performer’s life, it doesn’t make for much of a cinematic experience.

The style of The United States vs. Billie Holiday doesn’t do it any favors, as it’s as frenetic as the story.

Given its approach to Billie Holiday’s story, the film would have greatly benefited from an evolving aesthetic that could have helped navigate the audience through the constantly shifting timeline of events – but instead what’s delivered is haphazard as the narrative. There are transitions used occasionally, with the action going back-and-white and spurts of archive footage are spliced in, but there’s no real pattern to these spurts of style, as it’s far more frequent for jumps in time to simply be identified with a displayed year in gold lettering at the bottom of the screen. The touches are nice, but with no consistency to them they are just part of the jumbled feeling the movie possesses.

Andra Day’s turn as Billie Holiday doesn’t save the film, but it’s an awesome breakout performance.

There is a lot about The United States vs. Billie Holiday that doesn’t feel like it knows entirely what it’s doing, but that never fails to be compelling is the performance by Andra Day. Though the film marks her first leading role, you wouldn’t know if just based on what’s on screen, as she has all the confidence in the world and a strong dramatic presence. It’s a role that demands a lot as far as range, as she has to portray Holiday’s radiant, sultry stage presence as well as the extreme lows of her heroin usage and abusive relationships, but Day is wonderful and provides a deeply human side to an icon.

The United States vs. Billie Holiday doesn’t so much feel like a film based on a screenplay as much as it does a series of index cards pinned to a corkboard. It does provide a deeper look into a complicated life, and tells a story that on a larger level is most certainly worthy of the biopic treatment, but it doesn’t always seem to have a firm grasp on exactly what it’s trying to say or get across about the singer. By the end of it you do have a greater appreciation for what Holiday went through during her career, and audiences will immediately be tuned into to what Andra Day is doing next, but the movie also doesn’t quite come together coherently enough to deliver proper impact, and that’s a disappointment.

The Wonder Years won plenty of fans during its run from 1988-1993 as viewers watched young Kevin Arnold (Fred Savage) grow up in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Now, the beloved sitcom is getting a reboot with Fred Savage on board, but that doesn't mean a show is on the way to revisit Kevin Arnold, his friends, and family. A new version is in the works at ABC, centered on a black family in 1960s Alabama.

The new version of The Wonder Years is developing at ABC with original series star Fred Savage on board as director and executive producer, according to The Wrap. Lee Daniels, who created the hit Fox series Empire, is also producing, although it's probably safe to say that any family at the center of a version of The Wonder Years isn't going to have a ton in common with the Lyon family of Empire. Fred Savage isn't the only person from the original Wonder Years attached to the new project. Co-creator Neal Marlens will serve as a consultant.

While the original Wonder Years never specified where the Arnold family lived, the new project is set in Montgomery, Alabama in the late 1960s. Centered on a black middle class family, they'll work to make sure that the late 1960s will be "wonder years" despite the turbulent times.

The setting in the late '60s means that the new project will be set in the same era as the original, if not the same place. It also means that any Wonder Years fans who hoped to see Fred Savage reprise his role for the reboot shouldn't count on it. Maybe if the new show was set in 2020 and accounted for a grown-up Kevin!

The new Wonder Years also isn't guaranteed to make it to the small screen. At the time of writing, the new project only has a pilot production commitment from ABC. A miniature writer's room will get started after the script for the pilot is approved. The reboot is a long way from becoming an ongoing TV show, and nothing is guaranteed.

That said, ABC is probably the ideal place for a Wonder Years reboot. Despite rumors of what led to the cancellation of the original series, The Wonder Years had a successful run of six seasons on the network in the late '80s and early 90s. ABC has had great success in recent years with new versions of classic comedies, such as Roseanne's incredibly successful (albeit brief) revival run and then the launch of The Conners. ABC also just lost Modern Family, which was a longtime comedy anchor. The network may be in need of a new family sitcom.

That's not to say that ABC gives the go-ahead to every new take on an old classic, as the network recently passed on a thirtysomething sequel series that would have starred Supergirl's Chris Wood, and several projects are further along in development at ABC than this new Wonder Years. Only time will tell if Fred Savage is able to bring another version of the show to the small screen.

For now, you can always watch (or rewatch) the full original run of The Wonder Years streaming on Hulu. If you're in the market for some more current and upcoming options, check out our 2020 TV premiere schedule.

Shows get cancelled all the time for a myriad of reasons, and with the amount of content being created today, it’s easy to miss something you may have loved. Lee Daniels’ Star is one of those shows that just deserved better. Practically no one watched You when it aired on Lifetime (myself included), but once it landed on Netflix and we all found out it existed, it got the recognition and fanbase it rightfully deserves. Shows like Lost and Scandal long overstayed their welcome with the help of airing during a time when most of us had a scheduled night in to watch live TV, but Star wasn’t given that chance.

Star is about a girl group trying to make it as recording artists in Atlanta, but it goes so far beyond that, tackling drug addiction, single parenthood, racial discrimination, deportation, and more. The show was making a difference, launching careers, having hard conversations, and being all around wonderful when its light was put out. You should still watch it, and here’s why.

Diversity Is Valued And Celebrated

With the recent events causing people to wake up and examine the need for diversity, many companies and brands have vowed to diversify their team. That’s great - but Lee Daniels has always cared about representation, and that shows on Star. Multiple races and ethnicities are featured on this show, as well as sexual orientations and gender identities. Every character is dynamic with a purpose and a story.

The writers took care to really celebrate the diversity of the characters by giving each one a voice, rather than merely checking them off a list of inclusion and having, for example, a gay neighbor who doesn’t impact the storyline or an Indian friend who exists only for comic relief of the lead but you never get to know what goes on in their life apart from the lead. This is the first show I have seen with a prominent transgender character, played by Amiyah Scott, and storylines that highlight multiple challenges the transgender community faces.

The Original Music Is Excellent

I didn’t want to lead with this point because I know it will turn some people off (it almost turned me off) but Star is a musical drama. Hear me out, I love musicals. Huge fan of Hamilton, Wicked, and The Greatest Showman over here. But I prefer musicals to be on stage or in a film, not a tv show. That being said, the original music featured on Star is so good, I couldn’t wait for them to break into song again. The songs are primarily R&B with some pop, rap, and even gospel, and every single song is a hit. I highly recommend checking out the soundtrack, specifically “Breathless” “So Sick” and “Rude” if you’re not sold on trying a musical show, and if you like these you’ll be downloading new songs after every episode.

The Young Cast Is Insanely Talented

Jude Demorest, Ryan Destiny, and Brittany O’Grady, the three leads who make up the girl group on the show, are all triple threats. As most celebrities, they’re in amazing physical shape and watching them dance made me want to work out even harder, but these young women are not actresses who can dance a little or dancers who can carry a tune. They are, individually, singers, dancers, and actresses. The male leads Luke James and Quincy Brown are also people to watch. They were recording artists before booking the show but I hadn’t heard of them before watching and missed out on years of great music!

An Overused Stereotype Is Flipped

We’ve all seen hundreds of stories about poor black people and rich white people, but Star flips what we’ve seen many times over and gives us the opposite. Alexandra (Destiny) is a black 21-year old from a wealthy family who meets half-sisters Star (Demorest) and Simone (O’Grady) who have been in and out of foster homes and waiting to age out of the system. The three have a lot to learn about each other when they form a group and their upbringings impact how they make decisions when it comes to writing and performing music and marketing themselves as a trio. There is a price to pay to chase their dreams, and they don’t agree on which price is too high.

Queen Latifah.

Queen Latifah. She’s amazing. What can’t she do? Nothing. On Star, she plays Carlotta Brown, the manager and mother-figure to the girls as they embark on their journey into the music business. Carlotta is often the voice of reason, though she makes many questionable decisions of her own and let me just say Queen Latifah freaking delivers. She will make you laugh, cry, angrily throw something at the tv, and keep coming back for more. She also lends her powerhouse vocals to multiple songs throughout the series which is another reason you’ll be glad it’s a musical, trust me.

Fantastic Guest Appearances

Although you’re already sold because, Queen Latifah, Star has so many guest stars it’s like a new surprise every other episode! Brandy, Benjamin Bratt, and Evan Ross are all recurring regulars who the show would not be the same without, and then there are the guest appearances. There are too many to name here, but among my favorites are Lenny Kravitz, Missy Elliot, Mike Epps, Patti LaBelle, Meagan Good, Tyrese, Elijah Kelly, KeKe Palmer, and Chad Michael Murray.

I’ll note that while Star exists in the same universe as another Lee Daniels show on Fox called Empire, there is only one crossover and you do not need to watch Empire to enjoy or understand Star. Personally I only made it through the first few episodes of Empire, I felt it was over-dramatized and there was a lot of over-acting, kind of like I was watching them film the show instead of being immersed in the world they created and it didn’t feel authentic, but I did not have that issue with Star. I’m also closer in age to the leads of Star and I like to be able to relate to the main characters on my shows.

There are only 3 seasons (12 episodes in the Season 1, 18 in Seasons 2 and 3), so it’s not a huge commitment. You can watch Star on Hulu now, so get to binging and let me know what you think!

Empire will air what could be its final episode Tuesday, April 21, but in an ideal world, there will be more. Co-creators Lee Daniels and Danny Strong are both optimistic that while the show had to stop production with two hours of content remaining in its final season, a proper series finale may still come some day.

Lee Daniels spoke ahead of Empire's current final episode, and shared thanks for everything he's experienced with the show. Daniels said in a statement (via THR) that while he's upset the show couldn't do the finale as intended, he's hoping there's still a chance to do that and more in the future.

Empire's current final episode, "Home Is On The Way," will be a Cookie-centric episode. Taraji P. Henson's character will reflect on her life and her past with Lucious (Terrence Howard), and the Lyons will take on one of their biggest enemies yet. There's not much in the way of what exactly fans should expect, although if they don't like the ending, at least fans can take solace in that it might not be the end for good.

For what it's worth, Danny Strong said that the original Empire finale was one that everyone in the know was a fan of. It's kind of a downer to hear ahead of the finale the Fox series will actually show, but perhaps the passion for this finale will make Strong and Lee Daniels that much more adamant about ensuring it sees the light of day.

The question now is will Empire get some kind of movie television event that consists of the final episodes? It's also possible Empire's story could conclude via a spinoff series, which the franchise has flirted with in the past. Lee Daniels discussed the possibility of an Empire spinoff back in early January (via Deadline), one that potentially starred Taraji P. Henson's Cookie. It's possible the final episodes could've set the stage for that a little better, but with them nixed, perhaps they'd be used to kick off an entirely new series?

There is a chance that Fox just completely closes out Empire completely. Though the series has been successful on the network, its tangential spinoff Star was cancelled after 3 seasons. Perhaps Fox will decide this upcoming finale is enough, and move on from the Lyon family and their chaotic lives.

As mentioned, Empire's current finale is scheduled for Tuesday, April 21. Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for more on what's happening with television, and for a look at what's happening with movies as well.

While the battle against coronavirus continues to rage in hospitals, the Hollywood industry has lost another beloved and well-known figure this week. Charles Gregory Ross, the Emmy-nominated hairstylist for 2005's Lackawanna Blues and who was more famous for movies like Remember The Titans, Drumline and for frequent collaborations with prolific director Tyler Perry, has died following a fight against Covid-19 over the past several weeks.

Following the celebrity hairstylist’s death, Tyler Perry put together a lengthy and emotional post that pays tribute to Charles Gregory Ross, who worked with the director most recently on Netflix's A Fall From Grace (which came out earlier in 2020), but also worked on other Perry projects, including Madea Goes To Jail and The Family That Preys.

In the lengthy post, Tyler Perry also took the opportunity to speak to the community about staying home and staying safe, given the novel coronavirus is not messing around and reports have indicated black people are at a higher risk of dying from Covid-19. He noted:

Viola Davis has also frequently worked with Charles Gregory Ross, including when he did her hair for the Academy Awards as well as several movies. She called the hairdresser a “jewel,” noting,

Like Viola Davis and Tyler Perry, Lee Daniels had similar fond memories of working with Charles Gregory Ross, sharing a memorably behind-the-scenes story about working with the longtime hair stylist. Their project The United States vs. Billie Holiday is currently in post-production.

Charles Gregory Ross’ work will still live on. The hair stylist was recently able to work with Rosario Dawson on her upcoming project DMZ, which is scheduled to air on HBO Max when the service launches with new content in the coming months. She wrote on Instagram after learning of the news:

Charles Gregory had kept his fanbase and those who knew him abreast of what was happening with his novel coronavirus diagnosis, sharing images and other posts on Instagram about the status of the diagnosis.

As Jimmy Fallon touched on after Hal Willner passed away after his own battle with Covid-19, the spread of coronavirus means more and more people’s lives are being touched by the disease both directly and peripherally in ways we couldn't have imagined only a few short weeks ago. There may be nothing tougher than being unable to mourn together, but our thoughts go out to Ross’ family and friends during this tough time.

It’s hard to believe Empire is currently airing its sixth and final season on Fox. The show has already premiere with a pretty shocking opener, but despite the cliffhanger season premiere, the larger absence that may be felt is that of Jussie Smollett. Now, Terrence Howard is speaking out about his feelings related to the actor missing from the show.

While Terrence Howard did not address any of the allegations still being lobbied against the actor, he did say he personally has missed Jussie Smollett on the set of Empire during production so far in Season 6.

As for Terrence Howard, this isn’t the first time the actor has spoken out in support of Jussie Smollett. He’s mentioned previously he feels like Jussie Smollett is someone he’s “called my son” across the time they’ve spent working together on Empire and has said the Smollett he knows is not the one that has been portrayed in the media. Ultimately, however, Jussie Smollett is not expected to appear as Jamal in Season 6 of Empire as it says its final goodbyes to fans.

While not seemingly willing or wanting to wade into the personal life allegations that have been lobbied against Jussie Smollett by the Chicago Police Department, Terrence Howard did tell Extra’s Billy Bush that the actor has been missed during the filming of the current season of Empire. It’s probably a weird position to be in, to have a relationship with an actor who was unceremoniously dropped from the show following a series of allegations and reports.

Jussie Smollett was ultimately cut out of Season 6 of Empire after allegations hit following an attack and the idea he may have orchestrated a hate crime against himself. While the initial charges that the attack may have been a hoax were dropped, there’s still an ongoing separate investigation by the Cook County inspector general and the Chicago police are still trying to recoup $130,000 in costs related to that investigation.

None of this is remotely related to Empire or its final season, and Fox ultimately decided it wasn’t worth keeping Jussie Smollett on the air as all of this personal life stuff was going on. Show creator Lee Daniels confirmed the decision back in June. Then, Smollett's exit was explained ahead of the premiere, with Daniels noting his character Jamal will be “taking a sabbatical” away from the rest of the Lyon family.

Meanwhile, the Fox series has already moved on to a bigger focal point this season, possibly relating to the death of its patriarch. Empire currently airs on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET. To take a look at when all of your other fall favorites are returning, check out CinemaBlend's full premiere schedule.

TV writers are no strangers to rewriting storylines or character arcs when something in real life affects a series’ season. Superstore wrote in America Ferrera’s pregnancy at the end of Season 3, while Friends added in Monica and Chandler’s struggle with infertility to echo Courteney Cox’s own experiences. Empire is now doing something similar with Jussie Smollett, who was written out of the show at the end of Season 5 following a controversial and high-profile arrest.

Jussie Smollett, who played Jamal Lyon on the successful Fox series, got tangled up with the law earlier this year when he stated that he’d been attacked by two men who used racial and homophobic slurs. Later, Smollett was arrested for allegedly fabricating the whole ordeal and lying to police about it, but the charges against him were finally dismissed in March. The case and the bad publicity he was getting didn’t bode well for his run on Empire, and in June it was confirmed that he would not return to the show.

In Season 5, Episode 16, “Never Doubt I Love,” Jamal finally married Kai and that was the last we saw of Jamal. So how will the show explain his absence? Empire showrunner Lee Daniels spoke with TVLine about how the series will handle Smollett’s departure and what lies ahead in terms of Jamal’s future.

Jamal and Kai will therefore stay in London. For what it’s worth, Jamal’s storyline at least ended on a happy note. Having spent five seasons being at odds with Lucious, played by Terrence Howard, Jamal struggled for a long time with his father’s disapproval, with Jamal’s sexual orientation being a major point of contention. Not only that, the Lyons family has always been in the public eye living a fairly dramatic life, so Jamal wanting a break from all of that makes sense within the scope of the story.

Prior to Jussie Smollett's departure, it seemed Fox and Lee Daniels were still open to keeping Smollett on Empire, and the actor was even signed on for the show’s sixth season. So it came as a bit of a surprise when the offer was rescinded and Smollett found himself out of a steady job.

The show must go on, however, and Empire recently cast Lethal Weapon actress Keesha Sharp in a recurring role. Sharp will play Paula Wick, a doctor with a lot of compassion, though no other details about her character have been confirmed.

Empire Season 6 will premiere Tuesday, September 24 on Fox at 9 p.m. ET. For all your TV needs, make sure to check our handy fall schedule.

Empire was a wild ride throughout its fifth season as it built to the reveal of which member of the Lyon family would wind up in a coffin. The question of the big death cliffhanger wasn't the only one lingering over the show, though, as Jussie Smollett's legal trouble raised the possibility that he would be axed from the show.

Now, Empire creator Lee Daniels (who had some interesting comments earlier) has seemingly delivered an answer, and it's not one that Jamal fans will be happy about. In response to a report that the writers were planning on keeping Jussie Smollett on board, Daniels posted this:

Lee Daniels' tweet didn't beat around the bush in debunking the claim that Jussie Smollett will be written into the upcoming sixth season of Empire. He could have simply stopped at stating that the report of his return is "not factual," which would have left room for interpretation that Smollett will be back but the writing process simply hasn't started yet. Instead, Daniels just went ahead and confirmed that Smollett won't be back.

The cast and crew of Empire were reportedly split over the Jussie Smollett controversy during Season 5. The whole mess started back in January, when Jussie Smollett came forward and claimed that he'd been attacked on the streets of Chicago, and the incident was investigated as a hate crime. There was an outpouring of public sympathy for Smollett, including from his Empire costar Taraji P. Henson.

Then, rumors began to circulate that Jussie Smollett had staged the attack, with some suggesting that it was for the purpose of winning a salary bump. In the early days, Empire had no plans to write Smollett out of the show, although his show scenes were cut and he was axed from the last two episodes of Season 5. When he was arrested in February, it began to feel unlikely that he could return for a sixth season.

New rumors began to spread that Empire was looking to recast Jamal, and that possibility has not yet been definitively debunked, so it's possible that Jamal could return from his honeymoon with a new face and set of pipes. A lot of changes are in store anyway considering how Season 5 ended Cookie and Lucious' stories.

The early confirmation that Jussie Smollett won't be back for Season 6 means fans will have a lot to speculate about over the rest of hiatus. Will Jamal be recast, or will he be gone? If he's gone, was he killed off, sent off for an off-screen happily-ever-after with Kai, or something else? How will the Lyon family be different?

Find out when Empire returns in the 2019-2020 TV season on Fox. For now, you can find new TV options on our summer TV premiere schedule.

Empire was making headlines throughout its winter hiatus, but not for the best kind of reasons. Actor Jussie Smollett reported being attacked on the streets of Chicago, and his description of what happened resulted in the incident being investigated as a hate crime. The plot soon thickened, however, and Smolett was arrested for filing a false police report. Now, Empire co-creator and executive producer Lee Daniels spoke out about the scandal, only hours before a new episode of the show, saying this:

Lee Daniels' description of the scandal as a "freakin' rollercoaster" certainly fits the sequence of events that went down following Jussie Smollett's report of an attack. The immediate aftermath saw an outpouring of sympathy for Smollett from fans, Empire cast members like Taraji P. Henson, and producers. Then, rumors began to circulate that Smollett had staged the attack as part of a bold plan to score a higher salary. Fox blasted the rumors as ridiculous early on, but the story didn't stop there.

The investigation into Jussie Smollett's reported attack continued, and although he wasn't axed from the show, he was reportedly having scenes cut from the second half of Season 5. Then, less than a month after Smollett first claimed that he was attacked, he was arrested on charges of filing a police report, and he could face years in prison and heavy fines, although he was released on bail.

Only time will tell what will happen with regard to Jussie Smollett's legal case, but it didn't take long for Fox and Empire to settle on how to handle his character in the remaining episodes of Season 5. Although he wouldn't be edited out of the episodes that had already been filmed, Smollett was cut from the final two, which had not yet been completed at the time of his arrest.

Rumors of a recast for Empire Season 6 (assuming it scores a renewal from Fox) began to spread, but showrunner Brett Mahoney came out and said that it was too early for a decision about Jussie Smollett's future on the show to be made. If Smollett winds up going to prison, the show really isn't going to have a choice other than to write out or recast the character.

Still, a lot is still up in the air, including whether Empire will even continue after it wraps up the big mystery in Season 5. Check out Lee Daniels' message, which he filmed and posted himself on Instagram:

The spring premiere of Empire revealed a way that Jamal could be written out to accommodate any decision to axe Jussie Smollett from the show. If the ratings don't pick up, the folks at the show may have larger concerns than what will happen to Jamal. For now, you can catch new episodes of Empire on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.

It seems like nowadays nothing is safe from being remade or rebooted, whether it's a beloved drama, classic comedy or a superhero that's already had plenty of times to shine on the big screen. The latest re-imagining to be announced is Terms of Endearment, the movie that originally came out in 1983 that starred Shirley MacLaine, Jack Nicholson and Debra Winger. Over three decades later, Hollywood is apparently ready to give Terms of Endearment an update, as it's being reported that Oprah Winfrey is preparing to board it.

According to The Wrap, Oprah Winfrey is currently in talks to star in a Terms of Endearment remake that's in development at Paramount Pictures. If cast, she would score the role of Aurora Greenway, the character Shirley MacLaine played in the original. Not only that, but Lee Daniels is also being sought out to direct the new movie. Neither Winfrey nor Daniels are officially involved yet, but if both of them work out deals, this will be the first time they've worked together since 2013's The Butler, where Winfrey starred opposite Forest Whitaker.

1983's Terms of Endearment followed 30 years of a relationship between mother Aurora Greenway (Shirley MacLaine) and daughter Emma Greenway-Horton (Debra Winger) as they searched for love and dealt with life's obstacles. Eventually Aurora meets Garrett Breedlove (Jack Nicholson), a retired astronaut who lives next door. The cast also included Danny DeVito, Jeff Daniels and John Lithgow. It was nominated for six Golden Globes and won four, and was also nominated for 11 Academy Awards and won five. So yeah, it's safe to say that this is a cinematic classic. Good luck to Lee Daniels or whoever helms the remake trying to make it anywhere near as good as its predecessor.

Along with her many other endeavors, Oprah Winfrey has taken the occasional acting role over the last decade. As mentioned earlier, she appeared in The Butler as Gloria Gaines, a role for which she was nominated for multiple awards. In 2014, he played civil rights activist Annie Lee Cooper in Selma. She'll appear later this year as Deborah Lacks in the TV movie The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (which she's also producing), and in 2018, she'll be seen as Mrs. Which in A Wrinkle in Time. Lee Daniels has been keeping himself busy of late with the Fox shows Empire and Star, but he's also still attached to direct the Richard Pryor biopic.

We'll keep you updated on how the Terms of Endearment remake is coming along as more news comes in, but in the meantime, let us know what you think of Oprah Winfrey and Lee Daniels potentially being part of it in the comments below.

Lee Daniels' Empire became a huge hit for Fox when it debuted back in January 2015, and the bold hip hop drama has continued to deliver pretty excellent ratings for the network ever since. Daniels got the chance to expand the world he created for Empire with a second series called Star, and all signs point toward another show that doesn't hold back from touching upon subjects usually considered taboo. Star actor Benjamin Bratt spoke in a conference call with press about how Lee Daniels crafts his dramas, saying this:

Star follows a group of three teenage girls as they strive for stardom in the music biz. The new show doesn't shy away from controversial subjects any more than Empire does, and no character currently pushes the envelope quite as much as Bratt's Jahil Rivera, who is a washed-up talent manager attempting to use the harmonious trio to fight his way back to the top in the industry. Sure, one of the girls is heavily into drugs and another killed a man, but they're teenagers who clearly don't know what they're getting themselves into! Jahil knows what he's doing, and he has already shown a willingness to cross lines that are not usually crossed in the middle of a broadcast network's primetime lineup. Outside of Lee Daniels' world, that is.

While none of the main players on Star are without serious character flaws, Jahil got off to an especially slimy start when he met Star Davis after she snuck into a strip club to seduce him into becoming her manager. Jahil was immediately entranced by Star, and it was pretty obvious that he was interested in her for more than her talent as a singer. When I asked Benjamin Bratt about Jahil's dynamic with Star moving forward, he had this to tease:

Lee Daniels' willingness to provoke is apparent in everything that Jahil has done so far. Not only is Jahil sexually attracted to this teenage girl who used her body to try and get him to sign her as a singer, but he also develops an unhealthy fixation on her when he discovers that she is the daughter of one of his former clients. Benjamin Bratt's Jahil is a combination of creepy and compelling, and he's a fantastic foil to Queen Latifah's Carlotta.

We're still early in the show's run at this point, so we can't say just yet if Star will achieve a similar amount of success as Empire. We do already know that Star and Empire exist in the same music industry, so we may get to see some of Lee Daniels' characters from one show crossing over to the other every once in a while to help things out. In the meantime, it seems that we can expect just as much provocation and envelope-pushing in Star as we've gotten over the years on Empire, and that could be a very good thing.

Tune in to Fox on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET to see what happens next with Benjamin Bratt's Jahil on Star, and don't forget to check out our midseason TV premiere schedule to see what else you can catch on the small screen in the coming weeks.

Hollywood has definitely had to contend with a variety of controversial "-isms" over the years. These topics run the gamut from ageism, to sexism, and (you guessed it) racism. Race became a particularly noteworthy topic last year when the protest hashtag "#OscarsSoWhite" became a hot button issue -- due to the decidedly monochromatic (a.k.a white) Oscar nominees. That being said, Lee Daniels -- a notable black filmmaker himself -- doesn't seem entirely on-board with the protest. Daniels said:

Lee Daniels' comments to The New York Times definitely portray him as a man unconcerned with recognition from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. While many have called for systemic changes to the way in which annual filmmaking accolades are dolled out, the Empire producer seems to think that the opposite approach is more productive -- focus on the work, and let the films you make define your career.

It's worth acknowledging that Lee Daniels' opinion comes from the position of a man who has actually been to the Oscars before. He received two nominations in 2010 for Precious: Best Director, as well as Best Picture. Although he ultimately lost both of those awards to Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker, he apparently remains firm in his filmmaking ideology. The film comes first, and the awards come second.

Of course, regardless of Lee Daniels' own opinions on the matter, the fact remains that other corners of Hollywood have very different takes on the issue. A number of celebrities boycotted last year's Academy Awards ceremony, and The Academy itself has become somewhat more vocal in its renewed effort to try and create a more diverse voting pool for The Oscars. In the eyes of these high-profile Hollywood personalties it's not as simple as focusing on one's own legacy.

At the end of the day there really is no clear-cut answer to this particular debate. Lee Daniels thinks that an artist should focus on his or her work above all else, while others in Hollywood think certain logistical changes need to be made in order to level the playing field for artists of all colors and gender identities. Neither one of these approaches is inherently better than the other, but we will definitely see how this situation pans out as the 2017 Oscars ceremony draws near.

We will bring you all of the latest and greatest information associated with The Academy Awards as more details are made available to us. The 2017 Oscars ceremony will air on Sunday, February 26 at 8:30 p.m. EST.

Casting actors for biopics, where they will, by necessity, play people who actually exist, or at least existed, is a tricky proposition. Steve Jobs recently proved that you don’t necessarily need to cast someone who looks like the person in question, but they at least have to be able to capture the spirit of the individual. And all things considered, the Richard Pryor biopic that’s been in the work for some time, may have found the perfect person to play legendary comedian Redd Foxx.

Foxx was a groundbreaking, not to mention foul mouthed as all hell, comedian most known for his explicit comedy albums and the sitcom Sanford and Sons. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock alum Tracy Morgan will play him in the as-yet untitled movie. In a statement, Morgan said:

Set to be directed by Lee Daniels (Precious, Lee Daniels’ The Butler), Morgan joins a cast that already includes Mike Epps in the lead role, and Kate Hudson as his wife. Produced by The Weinstein Company, who no doubt have high hopes for awards glory with this one — it seems tailor made for critical attention and acclaim — the film also stars Eddie Murphy and Taraji P. Henson as Richard Pryor’s parents, and Oprah Winfrey as the grandmother who raised him. You know, it’s your basic no-name cast.

Redd Foxx was an influential figure in comedy, and especially so in the life of Richard Pryor. In addition to being a fearless performer who wasn’t afraid to take on social norms and push boundaries, he also ran a comedy club and gave the younger comic an early career break by letting him open for the industry veteran. Born John Elroy Sanford, Foxx even appeared in Harlem Night with both Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor in 1989, just two years before his 1991 death from a heart attack.

In 2014, Tracy Morgan was involved in a violent traffic accident that included the vehicle he was in, a Walmart semi-truck, and several other cars, in which he was seriously injured, breaking numerous bones and winding up in a coma. In the interim, he has been focusing largely on recovery and rehabilitation, and pursuing legal action against Walmart, but just last month he hosted Saturday Night Live, and has plans to launch a stand up tour next year.

The history of cinema is replete with stories of the great lengths actors have gone to in order to nail their performances, from living as characters outside of their scenes to undergoing massive physical transformations and everything in between. Nicole Kidman is as dedicated to her craft as anyone, and in one particular sex scene, she let co-star John Cusack toss her around.

The two costarred in 2012’s The Paperboy, and when director Lee Daniels interviewed Kidman for Interview, he brought up the rough sex scene in question. He said he was worried for her because Cusack was throwing her around "like a mop." In response to his concern, the 48-year-old actor replied:

The next day, Kidman showed up on set brandishing a new array of bruises as a reminder of the previous day’s encounter. But again, she pushed off any injury as in service of a larger goal, of making the movie as good and authentic as they possibly could. She continued:

So maybe Nicole Kidman wound up with a few extra bumps and scrapes than she could have, had she spoken up, but she had a very good reason. John Cusack could, of course, have dialed back the rigor of her performance, or Lee Daniels could have stepped in to put a stop to a scene that could have gone too far. But Kidman, as a veteran performer of more than 70 roles, knew that it could have hindered the overall movie, and was willing to endure a handful of purple welts in service of the larger goal.

Whether or not it was all worth it remains a matter of opinion, as The Paperboy, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2012, received mixed reviews at best. However, out of everything, it is Kidman’s performance that has garnered the most praise for her risk taking and playing against her usual type. In the 1960s set film she plays a woman obsessed with a death row inmate, who tries to prove his innocence with the help of two reporters (Matthew McConaughey and Zac Efron). It’s a sexually and racially charged film, and Kidman pees on Zac Efron, so there’s that.

We'll see Nicole Kidman on screen next in just a litle bit, as the mystery thriller Secret in Their Eyes opens on November 20.

We already thought that Lee Daniels and Danny Strong were bonkers for adding so many new characters to Season 2 of Empire, and that was when we assumed that most of these characters would be relatively normal people. But Empire’s creative team had something completely different in mind for guest star Chris Rock, in that they fully intended for him to not only be a ruthless prisoner, but a cannibal as well. Yes, you heard that right. Chris Rock as a cannibal. And it would have happened to, if it wasn’t for those meddling Fox execs and their reshoots.

In Season 1, Empire did a lot of wild and batshit things, although most of it could be filed under “highly dramatic soap opera.” Spinning a character as a cannibal is something else entirely, but that’s what Daniels wanted Rock’s character to be seen as in the first episode of Season 2. When the idea was initially brought up, Fox’s higher-ups shot the idea down, but Daniels would not be swayed. As the director of the season premiere, he kept the cannibal characteristics intact and filmed one particularly gruesome scene where Rock is seen inside the prison with a plate of human body parts in front of him. That sounds amazing.

Daniels’ bravado didn’t make Fox execs any more understanding, though, and according to THR, they forced him to reshoot the scene. Rock ended up agreeing to return to the show’s Chicago set this summer to re-film certain scenes, and apparently the entire cannibal subplot has been all but eradicated, although it’s possible that viewers can pick up clues once they actually know what was originally planned.

I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for him wiping blood off of his mouth, and I’ll be listening for any cannibalistic turns of phrase. Perhaps the episode will make it look like he’s gay by having him leer at other prisoners, but he’s actually just wondering what they’d taste like with some fava beans and toilet wine. If NBC can take Hannibal to some of the darkest places on TV, you’d think that Fox could allow Empire to get weird with it.

Rock definitely isn’t the only guest star appearing in Season 2, although he’s presumably the only people-eater. His character and Lucious Lyon will be interacting with Ludacris in prison, and we’ve also got Marisa Tomei, Lenny Kravitz, Alicia Keys, Pitbull, Mariah Carey, Rosie O’Donnell and many more. The premiere episode will even feature cameos from CNN’s Don Lemon and Al Sharpton.

Regardless of whether or not any comedians will be seen gnawing on human flesh, Empire Season 2 will definitely premiere on Wednesday, September 23. If you haven’t caught up with Season 1 yet, do so now on Hulu.

The upcoming Richard Pryor biopic has been in development for a very long time, but now is finally starting to really get its wheels in motion. Having found its lead actor more than a year ago, the project is getting around to building its ensemble, and this weekend has begun stacking its lineup with big names.

Deadline says that the Weinstein Company is just about ready to grant the greenlight to the untitled Richard Pryor biopic, and director Lee Daniels is doing what he can casting-wise to convince the studio its the right call. If all goes according to plan, production will start up next year, and it looks like it will move forward with a lot of big names attached...

To start off with the actor assigned the role of Richard Pryor himself, the project has Mike Epps set to perform as the legendary comedian. Given the actor's background, we can likely expect Epps to hit the real funny notes that the film will surely deliver, but will be intriguing to see is how he winds up approaching the darker and more dramatic elements of Pryor's life and character. There are many great comedians in cinematic history who have put on brilliant serious performances, and Epps has an opportunity here to join their ranks.

Next up we have one of the newest additions to the cast of the Richard Pryor film, though she has actually been attached to the project in a producer capacity for quite a while now. After taking on a key role in Lee Daniels' The Butler, the director has gotten Oprah Winfrey to play Richard Pryor's grandmother. What makes the role a bit special is the fact that the woman Winfrey will be portraying was the operator of a brothel, and it was there that she wound up raising the would-be comedian.

From there we will talk about yet another very important woman in Richard Pryor's life - albeit in a very different era. In the movie, Kate Hudson will be portraying Jennifer Lee Pryor, one of the comedian's six wives and the one who was with him when he died from a heart attack in 2005. She first married him in 1982, and while they would wind up divorcing a year later, they wound up getting back together in 2001.

Finally we have the other newest addition to the Richard Pryor biopic cast. Playing the role of the central figure's father, Leroy "Buck Carter" Pryor, will be none other than Eddie Murphy. This will be the actor's first dramatic role in nearly 10 years - but the last time he tried was Dreamgirls, and his performance wound up earning him a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award nomination. The project will mark the first time that Murphy and Daniels have had the opportunity to work together.

As things stand, the plan is to start production on the Richard Pryor biopic in March - once Lee Daniels has completed work on the second season of his hit Fox series, Empire. We'll keep you up to date with the project's newest developments.

If you’re a part of a hugely popular piece of entertainment, there’s a good chance someone out there is looking to find a way to make their own money off of it. (Just ask James Cameron.) Director Lee Daniels dealt with an oddball lawsuit over the title of his 2013 film Lee Daniels’ The Butler, and something similar is happening with his hit TV series Empire, as Fox is preemptively suing a company demanding action over the “Empire” name. I think we all know how Lucious Lyon would handle this.

According to THR, the California-based record label and distribution company Empire Distribution, Inc. came at Fox with a demand letter that claims their name is being run through the mud by the series, which centers on “a label run by a homophobic drug dealer prone to murdering his friends.” The company is trying to say that they have the rights to “Empire,” “Empire Distribution” and “Empire Recordings.” (I guess that means no Empire Records sequels.)

Empire Distribution first sent out a letter in February, demanding $8 million for all damages and infringement claims. They followed that up with another claim earlier this month that gave Fox the options to either pay the $8 million, stop using the name “Empire,” or to pay $5 million and include Empire Distribution artists in future episodes. Not a sketchy proposition in the least, right? But with roster artists past and present like Kendrick Lamar, Freddie Gibbs and Busta Rhymes, it wouldn’t be the dumbest idea in the world for Empire to use some of them. But I doubt that’ll happen now that bad blood is flowing.

Fox’s lawsuit claims that Empire Distribution never received a federal trademark on the name Empire, and that the company was denied the right to use “Empire Distribution” for non-electronic music recordings. (Their registration for the name, which includes electronic music recordings, is still pending.) Fox also claims that confusion between the companies is unlikely, since Empire Distribution is nowhere near as well-known at this point, with a Google search of “empire record label” apparently not showing their website until users have looked through seven pages of results that are full of Empire links.

It’s unclear at this point what side of things a court will land on, considering Empire has already produced a Billboard-topping soundtrack album. That point would seem to further complicate matters for those who can’t read “from Season 1 of Empire,” thus easily understanding that this is from a TV show.

Since premiering in January, Empire’s ratings defied the odds and only got bigger from episode to episode, with well over 16 million people tuning into last week’s finale. Its success also drew some ire from NBA player Iman Shumpert, who initially said some of the characters were ripping off him and his model/musician girlfriend, but he later eased up on his complaints. Will Empire have more potential legal troubles in the future?

Fox’s Empire has brought in huge ratings since it first began airing this winter. Beyond attracting large audiences, the show has already enticed a fair share of celebrity guest stars to appear in the series. Hole’s Courtney Love has already shown up on the series, and more big names have been added for Season 1. Now, executive producer Lee Daniels has revealed he’s already thinking ahead and has some big names in mind for Season 2, including none other than a-list actor Denzel Washington.

Recently, Daniels was speaking out about Empire’s upcoming guest stars with EW when he revealed he would like to see a-list actor Denzel Washington guest star on the popular drama. He also dreams about having musician and Hunger Games actor Lenny Kravitz appear.

Getting Denzel to appear on a TV series sounds like wishful thinking, but Lee Daniels actually has a pretty good relationship with the actor, and is friends with the man in real life. Beyond this, Empire is not exactly your average TV series. The show was popular from the start, and is enough of a draw, ratings-wise to make a guest appearance a big deal. Obviously, Washington might not be particularly interested in appearing on a TV series, but if he does decide to take a TV role, Empire wouldn’t be the worst show to pop up in.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Lenny Kravitz is an ideal fit. The singer and songwriter has lately turned to a career in acting, appearing in the first two Hunger Games franchise films. More importantly, he also appeared in Lee Daniels’ The Butler, so Daniels should have a good idea of what to expect from Kravitz. And he’s not such a huge acting name that he would immediately turn down an offer to appear on a TV series.

Even if Daniels manages to nab his dream stars, it will still be a while before we see them on the small screen. In the meantime, Empire still has plenty of celebrities up its sleeve. Former American Idol contestant Jennifer Hudson has signed on for a 3-episode arc as a therapist character on the series. Additionally, Rita Ora and Patti LaBelle are scheduled to play themselves on the series, which centers around the music studio Empire Enterprises.

The best news? Empire has already been picked up for a second season on Fox, so Daniels’ Season 2 dreams are not necessarily premature. In the meantime, there are still plenty of Empire Season 1 episodes left.

You can catch Fox’s Empire on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET.

Mo’Nique has been known for her extensive comedic career, from her stand-up gigs to her movies like Phat Girlz and Soul Plane. But everything seemed like it would change for the better when she won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Precious — more money, more opportunities, more respect. Unfortunately, this hasn’t happened, and the renowned comedienne and actress has spoken out about her career trajectory, and what has happened since she won Hollywood's highest honor.

Mo’Nique recently spoke at length with The Hollywood Reporter and revealed that the reason behind her lack of major success in the dramatic field is because she’s been "blackballed" by Hollywood. At least, that’s what filmmaker Lee Daniels told her over the phone. The Precious director called her up about six or seven months ago, by her own estimations, and told her this. When she asked why, he responded, "Because you didn't play the game."

The Academy Award winning actress still doesn’t know exactly what he meant by this, and Daniels has been pretty vague in his official response to the matter. In a statement made to THR he said, in part:

The director also added that he does consider her "a creative force to be reckoned with," and Mo'nique added that he even come to her in recent years while in the early stages of casting projects. According to the actress, he not only first offered her Oprah Winfrey’s part in The Butler, but he also tried to get her on the television show Empire (on which he's an executive producer), and offered her the role of Richard Pryor’s grandma in Daniel’s upcoming Pryor biopic. However, they all "just went away," which she chalks up to "part of this business." She seems to be implying here that it all relates back to her being blackballed, though Daniels’ official response was that the powers that be came to the consensus of going another direction.

In Precious, Mo’Nique portrayed Mary, the abusive mother of Gabourey Sidibe’s Claireece "Precious" Jones. She scooped up award after award from BAFTA, SAG, Golden Globes, Oscars and more. In case you didn’t see the film, here’s just a taste of her performance. Spoiler alert: It’s pretty damn moving.

After her numerous wins, Mo’Nique assumed her career would jettison off into the Hollywood sunset. Instead, she felt that she had done something wrong by winning the award. Since Precious, she has only appeared in 2009’s Steppin: The Movie. However, she’s looking forward to debuting an indie film called Blackbird in which she stars and produces. As she told THR, she’s happy to be creating something outside of the Hollywood system. "Whenever you do see me on TV again, or in the movies," she said, "you'll know somebody played me fairly."

There are a few spoilers from the pilot episode of Empire in the first paragraph, but this story is too good to miss.

Fox’s newest drama Empire already has a lot of moving parts, but it’s not only the narratives that are complicated, as some of the show’s characters have points-of-view that can be highly controversial.There’s a flashback in the premiere where Terrence Howard’s bigoted Lucious Lyon tosses his very young son into the garbage outside because he innocently put on women’s clothing. A rough scene to watch, made even rougher knowing that the moment was plucked right from the childhood of Oscar nominated director and show co-creator Lee Daniels.

Speaking with Deadline about the sudsy drama, Howard shared how it felt to film the scene in front of Daniels, who directed the episode.

On a premium cable network, a scene like that would have been dragged out and weighed down to maximize the horror of the situation, but it’s delivered as an effectively shocking slam-bang here. We already had ten inklings that Lucious didn’t get Empire Entertainment to where it is by being a nice guy who follows a strict moral code preaching equality for all mankind. And that gut-punch showed viewers just how ruthlessly undignified Lucious is capable of being, while also building the fractured backstory of Jamal, Lucious’ more talented musician son, played by Jussie Smollett.

Had this just been an event that came from the imagination of screenwriter Danny Strong, it would have been awful enough. But knowing that Daniels’ life and family played such a big part in it adds a layer to the scene, and to the show as a whole. Filmmakers sneak their lives into their work all the time, and here’s hoping some of Daniels’ happier memories also make their way in.

This first season of Empire tells the story of the mini-mogul Lucious coming to terms with his impending medical problems by choosing one of his sons to run the going-public company, all while re-accepting the troublesome former matriarch Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) into everyone’s lives after she gets out of jail. It’s a solid set-up for big melodrama that obviously heads in dark directions.

Find Empire on Fox every Wednesday night at 9 p.m. ET.

Director Ava DuVernay's Selma has been hailed by many film critics - including myself - as one of the best movies of the year, and it is considered a heavy contender in this year's award season race. What you may not know, however, is that the movie actually spent a number of years stuck in Hollywood's famed development hell - and in that time, it underwent a large number of changes and saw a surprising number of famous faces in key roles come and go.

The story of Selma's long road to production was recently brought to light in an interview that DuVernay did with The Wrap, and during the conversation the filmmaker noted that there were some very talented people involved with the project long before she came aboard to helm - and not just in terms of the cast. For a long time, it was Lee Daniels who was going to make the movie - first attaching himself to the film back in 2009 - but he wound up making The Butler instead. There was also apparently talk at one point about Spike Lee potentially making the movie, but he ultimately moved on as well. It was David Oyewolo - who came on to the production during the Daniels years - who eventually recommended Ava DuVernay for the job, having previously worked with her on the 2012 feature Middle of Nowhere.

Obviously Oyewolo wound up being inherited casting from Selma's pre-DuVernay days, but there were a lot of other recognizable names and faces who were once attached to the film but didn't wind up being involved. In the interview with The Wrap, DuVernay specially noted Cedric The Entertainer as once being involved with the film, as well as Hugh Jackman. The former would have played Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s close associate Ralph Abernathy (eventually played by actor Colman Domingo), and the latter was attached to star as Selma's resident racist sheriff Jim Clark (a part that would go to actor Stan Houston). Looking back at our own archives, there was also a time when Liam Neeson was going to play President Lyndon Johnson, though it was ultimately Tom Wilkinson who actually performed the role.

Selma is a truly extraordinary film that is actually made rather important by the atmosphere in which it is being released, but one must wonder what the movie would have been like had it been made just a few years earlier. Would Lee Daniels' vision have matched up with Ava DuVernay's sporting a cast including Liam Neeson, Cedric The Entertainer and Hugh Jackman? Had Spike Lee stuck around, how would he have applied his personal visual style to the material? These are sadly questions that will never be answered outside of our own imaginations.

Good day, horror fans. The post-Halloween season is rarely a big one for our genre of choice, and theaters are proving that. The biggest thing hitting cinemas this week is David Hayter’s Wolves, with Jason Momoa, which might end up being better than everything else in theaters, but I’m guessing Foxcatcher has it beat.

In smaller news, you’ll be able to catch the blink-and-you-missed-it supernatural thriller Jessabelle out on DVD and Blu-ray starting January 13, 2015. Amblin is putting the dark magical thriller Pentacle together with Vertigo Entertainment and Black List screenwriter Ian Fried. IFC Midnight acquired the U.S. rights to the promising conspiratorial sci-fi thriller Ejecta. And on the TV side of things, The Sacrament director Ti West, Tank Girl director Rachel Talalay and David Lynch’s daughter Jennifer Lynch (Boxing Helena) will be handling episodes of the Eli Roth-produced WE series South of Hell.

And now for some Stephen Baldwin-driven insanity.

Check This Insane Trailer For Stephen Baldwin-Starring Magi

When I first started doing these Fear Monger columns, it was in my mission statement that none of the headlining stories that I’d run would ever involve a movie starring Stephen Baldwin. And here I am, aghast at how ridiculously bonkers his new film Magi looks, as can be seen in the trailer above. Now, I know a lot of that has to do with whoever put this trailer together, as their talents of using blisteringly loud audio and smashed-together images of demonic oddities are unparalleled. Still, Magi looks like an intriguingly batshit effort from Turkish director Hasan Karacadag (the Dabbe franchise).

The synopsis doesn’t sound like it has anything to do with the preview. It’s about a woman who moves to Istanbul for work as an English teacher, while her journalist sister starts having problems with her newborn. Enter Stephen Baldwin’s religious figure, Michael motherfuckin’ Madsen and his gun, and an endless supply of gothic religious iconography, along with other macabre imagery and characters with sharp teeth. There are dead bodies everywhere, and everything is shot very lushly, causing me to believe that Guillermo del Toro is producing this thing under a pseudonym or something. Even if it’s a cheesed-up 1980s lovefest, that would still make this one of most exciting upcoming horror flicks. My faith is with Hasan Karacadag, and, by default, Stephen Baldwin.

Ebola Zombies is a Martial Arts Movie That Exists

Along with ghosts, goblins and all the other expected creatures of the horror genre, there exists a subsection of threats based on headline-makers of the past and present. This is where we get, among other things, our serial killer movies and our EBOLA MOVIES! RUN!...Ahem, the American Film Market brought to light Ebola Zombies, which was being sold by Rob Hauschild. If you can imagine, Ebola Zombies is capitalizing on the attention spans of audiences who love zombie movies, fear Ebola and appreciate the hell out of wonky martial arts movies with generic posters.

I think we can all agree that this movie looks like low-budget madness, but there’s a story here that makes it sound even more fantastic. According to Deadline, it was called SARS Zombies a couple of weeks ago, but was changed to take advantage of the recent Ebola-izing of America’s fear center. So far, only Germany and Japan are getting in on the sunglasses-wearing fun, but no one is going to convince me that we won’t be seeing this movie in the U.S. in a few months.

The Butler’s Lee Daniels is Making a Horror Movie?

With his four movies, Lee Daniels has proven himself a director capable of prestigious highs (Precious), lows (The Paperboy) and whatever people thought of Lee Daniels’ The Butler. So one would be wise in thinking he’d head to some other awards-attracting material, but he’s instead taking on a "real life possession case" for the supernatural thriller Demon House. Or Lee Daniels’ Demon House, in case any studios decide to make things complicated. I didn’t see this coming.

According to Deadline, the life rights of Indiana’s Latoya Ammons were acquired in order to turn Demon House into a reality, though no screenwriter has been locked in just yet. The Ammons family has been reportedly plagued by unexplainable circumstances, which have come to the attention of Child Services and the Gary Police Dept. Their problems started out with strange noises and mysterious swarms of flies, and it then became more complicated, with the Ammons children being witnessed levitating and being dragged across the walls and ceiling of the house. Then came the inevitable exorcism, and the case is still ongoing. There’s no question the dearth of black filmmakers in the horror genre is a terrible thing, but will this be something special or just another overproduced drama?

The Device Trailer Delivers Creepy Sci-Fi Thrills

Lo fi sci-fi is almost always worth a watch to me, as the ideas therein are usually worth mulling over, even if the films aren’t always so great. Though I’d never ever heard of his first movie The Invoking, director Jeremy Berg has caught my eye with his sophomore effort The Device, which recently showed up with the above mindbending trailer. If it turns into a run-of-the-mill pod people abduction story, I’ll be disappointed, but I have to give this trailer credit for at least appearing as if it’s taking a somewhat unique approach to alien horror.

Sisters Rebecca (Kate Alden) and Abby (Angela DiMarco) are out at their family cabin with Calvin (David S. Hogan) when they find a strange orb in the dirt. It turns out it has alien origins and will clue them into the world’s extraterrestrial presences, proving humans are no longer in charge of the world. Hopefully Berg, who also wrote the screenplay, shoots for absurd weirdness over traditional B-movie schlock. I like the idea of a simple orb being the source of unpredictable horror. Maybe that’s just the Hellraiser cube fan in me. The Device will hit DVD on December 16th.

For Real, Verne Troyer is a Gnome in Gnome Alone

So, I hate just being mean to horror movies, but fuck Leprechaun: Origins for, regardless of its own merits or faults, spitting in the face of the Leprechaun franchise by changing everything. I’ve got all my hopes and wishes that Gnome Alone is the next little person-fronted horror franchise. Because yes, the Culkin-ishly titled Gnome Alone stars Verne "Mini Me" Troyer as a killer gnome, as you can tell from the gloriously designed DVD cover seen above. He’s like Nosferateeny, but with some kind of a weird goatee. I don’t even need a trailer.

Also starring Kerry Knuppe, Marlon Young, and (of course) Bill Oberst Jr., Gnome Alone is about a girl who gets a cursed amulet from a dying old woman, which results in all of her enemies dying at the tiny hands of a murderous gnome. How can a woman have enough enemies that their gnome deaths become notable to others? In any case, Gnome Alone comes out on DVD and VOD on January 20, 2015, which means its closer to next year’s Christmas than it is to any of the Home Alone movies that it’s seemingly aping.

Media mogul Oprah Winfrey has been spending more time on the big screen lately, with roles in such high-prestige pics like Lee Daniels' The Butler and the upcoming Civil Rights docudrama Selma. But for her next film, she's going downright gritty.

TMZ reports Oprah Winfrey has been cast to play a brothel-running madam in the biopic about the late Richard Pryor. But this is no common lady pimp role. Winfrey is set to portray a very pivotal figure in the young Pryor's life. That would be none other than the iconic and crass comedian's grandmother, Marie Carter. After Pryor's mother abandoned him at the age of ten, the boy went to live with his father's mother in Peoria, Illinois. There, little Pryor grew up in a brothel.

Let's take a moment to let that settle in...Okay?

Pryor's widow Jennifer Lee told TMZ that Oprah Winfrey has been eager to secure the role of Marie Carter, who is described as "cruel and abusive," since she first saw the script. As Winfrey is also producing the currently untitled Richard Pryor biopic, you'd think this would be an easy part to land, especially as the drama is being helmed by her friend and former collaborator Lee Daniels.

Nonetheless, it's rumored that Winfrey is hoping this dark turn will earn her some much desired acting acclaim. Sure, she was nominated for an Academy Award back in 1986 for The Colored Purple. But that was nearly 30 years ago! There are Academy members who weren't even alive then! (Though not many. The group is still predominantly older folks.) Winfrey may be gunning hard for a win. And remember, playing a malevolent mother figure has worked well in the past. Consider Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine, Shirley MacLaine in Terms of Endearment or Mo'Nique in Lee Daniels' Precious.

Casting the lead in this Richard Pryor biopic has been a bit of a headache for its filmmakers. It seemed certain "It Guy" Michael B. Jordan would be taking it on. Then Nick Cannon and Marlon Wayans were considered contenders. But the coveted role of the outlandish comedian has gone to fellow stand-up Mike Epps. Best known for appearances in The Hangover and Next Friday, Epps has some serious turns coming up, including a supporting role in the Vince Vaughn crime-drama Term Life. But playing Pryor could prove a make-or-break moment for the entertainer.

It's currently unclear when the untitled Richard Pryor biopic will roll into production. But whenever it does, Epps will be ready, having already played Pryor in a previous pic. See, he recently wrapped on Nina, a Nina Simone biopic fronted by Zoe Saldana that proved his first chance to step into Pryor's shoes. Basically, Oprah couldn't ask for a better scene partner.

With recent pickup Gotham, Fox is tying into their audience’s love for Batman, and with Gang Related, they’re tying into people’s love for The Departed. The upcoming hip-hop-centered drama Empire, for which the network put in a full series order, is apparently Fox's way of feeding upon America’s untapped interest in an unofficial sequel to Craig Brewer’s 2005 drama Hustle & Flow. And I tell you what, it’s been hard out here for those of us who have been waiting so long (i.e. pimps.)

With its initial 13-episode season, Empire will be the first trip into television for Oscar-nominated director Lee Daniels, who developed the series his co-screenwriter on last year’s Lee Daniels’ The Butler, Danny Strong, most recently seen on FX’s Justified as a total douche of a prison guard. Strong, who also co-wrote both entries of The Hunger Games: Mockingbird, has written the pilot, which Daniels is set to direct. No word on whether or not either will stick to those duties for future episodes.

Terrance Howard, who worked with Daniels in The Butler, will star as Lucious Lyon, the street-tough head of music label Empire Entertainment, which he rules over with a charismatic fist. He is about to take the company public, which will add untold amounts of pressure to his life, and he’ll face it all head-on in defense of his beloved creation. Also starring with Howard is Hustle & Flow co-star Taraji P. Henson, who will play his ex-wife and former business partner Cookie, as well as Gabourey Sidibe (Precious), Jussie Smollett (The Mighty Ducks), Kaitlin Doubleday (Dragon Warriors), Trai Byers (90210), Malik Yoba (Alphas), Tasha Smith (For Better or Worse) and Grace Gealey.

On top of its talented cast and creative team, Empire will also feature a major musical presence. The soundtrack will be put together by the Grammy-winning producer TImbaland, and should include both original music and current pop tracks, plus covers. But will any of it create the award-winning waves of Hustle & Flow’s signature track “Hard Out Here for a Pimp?”

According to EW, Fox also ordered the coming-of-age series Red Band Society, executive produced by Steven Spielberg and Amblin Entertainment. It will follow a group of teenagers living in a big city hospital, all of whom become unlikely friends, with Octavia Spencer starring as the main nurse.

Fox hasn’t announced when they’ll be going into production on either show, but expect something soon with the fall season coming up in just a few months. I wonder if Daniels cleared things with Universal over their 2002 thriller Empire, lest we sit down to watch Lee Daniel’s Empire later in the year.

When it comes to biopics about stand-up comedians, there are only a few that would actually make any sense, and Richard Pryor stands to be the most sensible option. (Though Bill Hicks is right behind him, trying to not catch on fire.) But just because it makes sense doesn’t mean it’s an easy task. The long-gestating Pryor pic gained ground some months back once Forest Whitaker attached himself as a producer, and now The Weinstein Company may have found just the high profile director they want in Lee Daniels, who is currently in talks to take over what will assumedly be titled Lee Daniels’ The Richard Pryor.

The Weinsteins were behind Lee Daniels’ The Butler, fighting for it during that awkward legal suit over the film’s title. Allowing the heavy hand of Daniels to handle the tumultuous events in Pryor’s life is seemingly controversial in and of itself, as one never knows whether they’ll get the Precious Daniels or the Paperboy Daniels. Maybe Nicole Kidman can star as the person who pees on Pryor after he set himself on fire while freebasing. It’s just a thought.

And while the role of director is undoubtedly an important piece of this puzzle, the real kicker is going to be hiring the right actor to imbue the right amount of frankness and legitimacy within the role of the legendary comic. The three actors currently being considered are no surprises. THR reports the frontrunners are Eddie Murphy – who has been rabid for this role for years – Marlon Wayans, and Michael B. Jordan, who recently delivered a winning performance in TWC’s otherwise ordinary tragi-drama Fruitvale Station. Wayans is apparently just the right age for the role, as the film will center on Pryor during the heyday of his 30s, but Jordan’s superior talents as an actor may win him the part, which means we’ll get a lot of terrible-looking age makeup.

But seriously, I’d rather see some terrible-looking younger age makeup slapped on Murphy, because this is obviously the role the man has been destined to play for decades. Hear him tell it himself in the NSFW clip from Raw below.

While any biopic about such a talented and clever performer would be an interesting watch, this still-untitled project has Richard’s widow Jennifer Pryor on board as a producer, and she supplied TWC with over 50 pages of Pryor’s journals, which will certainly add a personal touch that would be impossible to duplicate. There’s nobody out there like Richard Pryor, and if Daniels does indeed head this film, I hope he remembers that.

Of course, if they wanted to make a fully fictional film where they set Pryor as the President of the United States, I’m all about that, too. Oh wait, he already did that.

Lee Daniels has something he swears he has to do, but he's got to talk to me first. It's late in the afternoon of the first of many long days of interviews Daniels will do for The Butler-- sorry, that's legally obligated to be Lee Daniels' The Butler-- and Daniels is getting through it by taking off his flip-flops, laying down horizontally on the couch in his hotel suite, and laughing a lot throughout our conversation. At one point he told me that our site has not been kind to him in the past-- and he's not wrong- but he was completely lovely anyway, giving long rambling answers, getting emotional when recalling intense moments on set, and at one point telling me I would have been a good producer for his movie (I would not have been, but it was nice of him to say).

The Butler is Daniels' fourth feature, and by far his most ambitious in terms of story, following White House butler Cecil Gaines as he works for every President between Eisenhower and Reagan. Daniels, a former casting director and producer who knows the value of selling a film, has said that he had to cast as many big names as possible to sell the film overseas, so he not only has Oscar-winner Forest Whitaker in the title role and Oprah Winfrey as his wife, but a huge cast of names playing various Presidents, including Robin Williams as Dwight D. Eisenhower, Liev Schreiber as Lyndon Johnson, and John Cusack as a very memorable-- and very sweaty-- Richard Nixon. Diehard Jimmy Carter fans, though, might be disappointed-- the famous peanut farmer only makes an appearance as himself, in old TV broadcasts.

Why did he leave Jimmy Carter out? Why is Cusack sweating so much? What moment on the set sent Daniels into a blind panic and made him realize he never could have been a Freedom Rider himself? Find out that and more in our conversation below, and see The Butler in theaters this Friday.

So, what happened to Jimmy Carter? Why isn’t he in this?

Umm, what happened to Jimmy? Because it would have felt too episodic and I had to skip over some of the presidents. It’s so hard to not make this feel like a movie of the week or a miniseries. I tried really hard to make it cinematic so that it didn’t seem like I was trying to tell a history lesson or a miniseries or a movie of the week about what happened in the White House.

Did you ever want to have him there?

The way it was scripted originally, Cecil comes in and he’s cooking collard greens and he’s teaching Cecil how to drink pot liquor, which is the juice from collard greens…

That’s a good moment. I wish that you at least shot it for the DVD.

You know what, you’re gonna be a good producer because I should have.

No, but that’s a salary that you didn’t have to pay. I would be a terrible producer. You’ve said that to get this movie made you had to put these famous faces in there and get enough people that would sell it internationally, but they’re so much fun. Was it people that you knew already? Beause John Cusack doesn’t really look that much like Nixon. He’s not the first person you’d think of, so it seems like you picked people that you liked.

And that I’ve worked with and that I like and that we’re friends. Because you have to sort of know me before we work together, because it’s a unique experience.

That’s what I keep hearing. I talked to David just now. He said you push him more than anybody else, but he likes that. He said anytime you call, he’ll come.

With John it was about trying to make these people sort of, just gave nuances of the presidents and not do caricatures of them. And you’re also dealing with great actors, actors that are incredible, so it was easy. If you know me you know I’m into the subtle-- I’m not into just anything that’s big, and that starts with the makeup and moves to the costume to the actor.

WIth John it seemed like he kind of had some of his Paperboy sweat leftover.

I’m probably the only one that feels that. I felt it when he was doing that. I said, “Oh my God, this is reminiscent to The Paperboy.” I turned to my assistant and said, “This feels like The Paperboy,” but that was Nixon. Nixon sweated.

Famously in the JFK debate.

Yeah, and he sweated all the time and John came in with all of this information about Nixon. All these actors came so prepared, but John knew all about Nixon, because he’s been played so fabulously before by Hopkins and Langella. We just wanted to make sure we nailed it in a way that was subtle.

You said you had to fight to get a PG-13 for this, right?

Like an animal for it. I don’t know why it was, I mean, I know that you can only use one fuck.

Yeah, Nixon gets it. I noticed that.

Did you? You watch people fight for PG-13s a lot. The Weinstein Company does it all the time, it seems like.

Yeah, I mean, there were a lot those, there were a lot of F-bombs in this film. A lot.

Well, there’s a lot of room for them.

Yeah, I regret some of them being out.

Yeah?

Yes, it adds humor. What I’m bringing to this film is humor through the darkness, because there’s so--what we experience with this film is dark, man. It’s dark. I cried a lot on the set. The actors cried on the set, at what had happened. We were on that bus [a Freedom Riders bus that gets firebombed by the KKK) and I was in the bus with the actors, sweating, sweaty, sweaty, sweaty. And I yelled, “Action,” and all these KKK members were coming out and Nazis were coming out, and it was scary with the crosses and everything. And I was scared and I yelled, “Cut,” and they kept coming. And for an instant, for a moment, I knew what it was like to be one of those kids.

So, they just didn’t hear you and they kept going?

Yeah, cause they couldn’t, because I was inside. And I knew what it was like for those kids, both black and white, that they were heroes, that those kids were heroes on that bus. I don’t know whether or not, that I could be a hero. I guess it was this wake-up call for me, that I didn’t think I’m man enough, that I could ever be man enough to die for a cause, you know what I mean.

Anytime you watch a movie about this stuff, you think about the kids …

How the fuck did they pull it off?

I have no idea. It’s amazing.

(Lee Daniels red carpet images via Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com)

You might think that a historical drama that focuses on the evolution of race relations in the United States might not be a platform for a media megastar to get a sexy makeover. But apparently you’d be wrong. The newly renamed Lee Daniels' The Butler has Oprah Winfrey playing Gloria Gaines, the loving wife of White House butler Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker). She also happens to own (get it, OWN?) tons of sex-soaked swagger. In the above clip, Gloria and Cecil are celebrating their empty nest and the latter’s birthday with all kinds of ‘70s style. Oprah is getting funky with some big gold hoop earrings, a big and beautiful Afro, and a black and white jumpsuit. And bonus good times: Whitaker has got one to match!

But this isn’t the first sultry image of Oprah from the film. Just after production wrapped on The Butler, she shared this downright confounding image of her and co-star Terrence Howard:

Having not yet seen the film, I’m at a loss as to how either the snapshot above or the clip up top fit into its larger story. Lee Daniel’s The Butler is based on the incredible life of Eugene Allen, who worked in service at the White House from 1952 to 1989, meaning he saw the administrations of the likes of John F. Kennedy, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan from a rare vantage point. The trailer for the film reveals Daniel and his screenwriter Danny Strong aimed to balance what Allen’s onscreen doppelganger Cecil sees within the White House with what he experiences in the gates beyond. And the latest poster suggests that this man was more than a servant to the president, but additionally an inspiration for change.

It’s difficult to know what to expect from Lee Daniels' The Butler as its director has a checkered filmography at best. His directorial debut was the Cuba Gooding Jr. vehicle Shadowboxer, which earned the kind of critical scorn that would urge some filmmakers to find a new vocation. But in 2009, Daniels returned with Precious, and his became the kind of underdog story Hollywood loves. The drama based on the novel Push by Sapphire was met with resounding critical praise, launched the career of Gabourey Sidibe, and won two Academy Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress (Mo’Nique).

All eyes were on Daniels when he unveiled his Florida-set follow-up The Paperboy. But while he managed a promising cast that included Nicole Kidman, Matthew McConaughey and Zac Efron, the thriller about two brothers who get caught up with a dangerous convict was met with critical jeers. Spanning decades and boasting a cast that includes Liev Schreiber, Robin Williams, Alan Rickman, John Cusack, Jane Fonda, Lenny Kravitz, James Marsden, Minka Kelly, and Mariah Carey (many of whom can be spotted in these newly released stills), The Butler is Daniels' most ambitious effort yet. But will it be a big hit or another spectacular miss? We’ll find out when Lee Daniel’s The Butler hits theaters on August 16th.

An arty poster for your small movie is a great way to get attention, and Lee Daniels knows that as well as anyone. The striking, beautifully designed poster images for Precious: Based On The Novel 'Push' By Sapphire helped keep that movie's buzz going from festival to festival, all the way to a Best Picture nomination. Daniels repeated the arty trick for The Paperboy, though that movie's fate in regard to critics and awards was a little tougher. Now it's time for The Butler-- excuse us, Lee Daniels' The Butler-- and the striking poster art is back. This new one you see above debuted over at Fandango.

It's hard to say what's more on the nose, this American flag-draped figure or the one from the film's first poster, a butler in a similarly subservient pose raising a Black Power fist. Oh wait you missed that one? It's very real; check it out below:

So the image of the man wrapped in the flag is striking, and you can't argue with that list of names off the side-- it's got to be the most diverse cast this side of, uh, Lincoln maybe? But there's a lot going on in this poster that I can't figure out at all. The tagline, "One Quiet Voice Can Ignite A Revolution," really has nothing to do with the central character of Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker), who served as a butler in the White House from the late 1950s through the mid-80s. As you can see in the film's trailers, Cecil is happy to be employed in a steady, well-paying job and is deliberately apolitical so he can hang on to his job; when his son, played by David Oyelowo, becomes involved with the Freedom Riders and eventually the Black Panthers, Cecil is furious. So how is Cecil being credited with sparking a revolution here?

Then there's the hand-scrawled font for the names and the title, which, again, is striking, but doesn't have a whole lot to do with the story at hand. It's a story about grown-ups, set largely in the White House-- handwritten signs, seemingly with Crayons, don't really have anything to do with it. It's like a design decision made based on what looked cool, but someone who quite possibly hasn't even seen the movie.

It's not easy to make a visually gripping poster for a movie that takes place across decades and will largely be sold based on its ensemble cast-- you run into dangerous "random floating heads" territory really fast. But this shot at making something dynamic for Lee Daniels' The Butler grabs your attention, then completely falls apart after a second glance. Will the movie itself be similarly weak? Find out for yourself when it opens August 16.

Movie studios and executives go to war with each other all the time, but we rarely get wind of it. Few moviegoers care when a certain exec is fired or replaced with another, when one studio gets the rights to a hotly contested book adaptations instead of another, or even when two studios team up to get a movie made and then fight over the profits-- that's how the Hollywood sausage gets made, and it rarely affects what you actually see in theaters.

But sometimes these fights among giants are both hilarious and important to the moviegoer, so we're psyched to continue watching the unfolding drama of The Butler-- the upcoming Lee Daniels-directed drama starring Forest Whitaker-- and The Butler, the 1916 short film that Warner Bros. claims would be inevitably confused by moviegoers with the new film. It's the kind of claim that is patently insane on its face-- who goes into the movies in 2013 expecting to see a nearly century-old short film that's not even available on DVD?-- but the MPAA bought it, allowing WB to tell the Weinstein Company, who will be distributing The Butler, that they have to change the title.

But if you know anything about Harvey Weinstein, and especially the way he handles films that he thinks have Oscar potential, you know he's not going to give up that easily. The Hollywood Reporter has learned that the Weinstein Company has enlisted powerful attorney David Boies, who argued against Proposition 8 at the Supreme Court earlier this year, to defend their title. Here's the statement that Boies made:

We're not taking about a court challenge here though-- you can't copyright a title, and Warner Bros. can't sue the Weinstein Company if they keep The Butler. But both companies are part of The Registration Bureau, an organization run by the MPAA that helps keep track of titles and make sure there's no room for confusion. It's totally unclear how Warner Bros. managed to win their case with the MPAA and explain that The Butler was damaging their archival short film-- they didn't even claim that they were planning to use the title in any way. And I'm also unsure exactly what Boies will do to help the Weinsteins win their case, beyond making strongly worded statements to the press and proving with his very presence that they mean business.

Part of me can't help but think that this is all about last year's Oscar race, secretly. Warner Bros. was the big winner when Argo took home Best Picture, while The Weinstein Company was in the thick of it to the very end with Silver Linings Playbook, which stood a decent shot at winning Best Picture itself. Think this is just another way of Warner Bros. rubbing in their victory? Hey, it's just as plausible as any other explanation for this nonsense.

Check out the trailer for The Butler below and let us know if you've thought of any other brilliant new titles Lee Daniels can use if Harvey Weinstein loses the battle.

Cinema has been around for over 100 years, and when you’re dealing with that kind of timeframe, there’s no doubt that certain film titles are going to overlap, assuming the title isn’t something completely out there, like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. There was drama when Paul Haggis called his Oscar-winning film Crash>, since David Cronenberg had already used that title for his car accident fetish drama. The producers behind Neil Burger’s 2006 ghostly drama The Illusionist got prickly when it became clear French director Sylvain Chomet’s L’illusionniste would be plainly translated for its release in the U.S. Both of these film pairs couldn’t feature movies more disparate in subject matter, so anyone who mistakes them just isn’t paying enough attention.

But if you manage to mix up Lee Daniels’ upcoming politically-centered biopic The Butler and Warner Bros’ 1916 silent short film of the same name, then maybe you should stop reading this story and call your doctor.

But wait! Deadline reports that may never be an issue for you, as Warner is attempting to stop The Weinstein Company from releasing Daniels’ film by that name, claiming title rights. Are you kidding me? 1916’s The Butler was produced by Lubin Manufacturing Company and distributed by General Film Company, and didn’t even end up in the Warner library until years later. (Incidentally, IMDB lists an Edison Films’ produced short also called The Butler that came out the year before, so if anybody was guilty of title infringement…)

It’s definitely a dick move on Warner’s part, especially since TWC so graciously allowed Warner to keep the title of their film The Good Lie despite it sounding like the TWC film The Good Life. In this case, Warner insiders, while assumedly sticking their noses in the air, say TWC should have tried to clear the title earlier, and that they’re protecting their rights because they can. Ugh.

Deadline says TWC appealed to Warner on behalf of the late film producer Laura Ziskin, whose last film was The Butler, and Daniels also gave a personal appeal, but neither one was successful.

Daniels co-wrote the screenplay with Danny Strong, adapting the Washington Post article “A Butler Well Served By This Election,” which chronicled part of the life of longtime White House butler Eugene Allen, who was invited back to D.C. to take part in Obama’s first inauguration. Granted, The Butler is a plain Jane title that doesn’t really do much for the imagination, but that’s how award-buzzed prestige films work. Got a noun? Slap a “the” on it and dust off your trophy shelf.

An arbitration will be scheduled soon, but it doesn’t appear that Warner will be backing down, which is unfortunate, since Daniels’s film is set to release on August 16. If you haven’t seen the star-studded trailer yet, take a look below, and let us know what you think about this story in the poll beneath the trailer.

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The last time a young, brunette starlet was picked to play Jacqueline Onassis Kennedy, it was Katie Holmes, handed a job she wasn't especially well-suited for in the troubled TV miniseries The Kennedys. Lee Daniels's upcoming film The Butler has pretty much nothing in common with that project, except that as a chronicle of Eugene Allen's 50-year service as a butler in the White House, the Kennedys are going to stop by-- and he's, yes, casting another young brunette to play Jackie O.

This time the job may go to Friday Night Lights star Minka Kelly, whom Lee Daniels told Screen Daily he's chosen to play the First Lady. She'd be joining a massive, mighty impressive cast that's already on board, including a few Lee Daniels veterans-- Oprah, who co-produced Daniels's Precious, is playing the wife of the titular butler; Matthew McConaughey, John Cusack and Nicole Kidman will be reuniting with Daniels after The Paperboy; and Lenny Kravitz, who made a strong impression as the nurse in Precious, is on board as well. The cast is rounded out by Alan Rickman, Jane Fonda, Cuba Gooding Jr., David Oyelowo, Terrence Howard and of course Forest Whitaker, who is playing the title role.

The whole film, you may remember, is based on a stellar Washington Post article about Allen, written on the eve of Barack Obama's election as President and focusing on Allen's experience working at the White House while America sorted out its own very complicated laws and attitudes toward African-Americans. Allen worked for eight different Presidents, and in a classic tragic twist, his wife of 65 years died the day before he cast his vote for President Obama. It's the kind of stunning historical story you can't help but want to see as a movie, and as Daniels lines up a huge cast to bring it to life, he's looking capable of doing it justice.

A few weeks ago it was revealed that director Lee Daniels has one hell of a dream cast in mind for his next project, The Butler. That list included such A-list talent as Oprah Winfrey, Hugh Jackman, Mila Kunis and John Cusack. But while those actors would all be playing supporting roles, the report also said that the filmmaker was interested in having David Oyelowo, who has a role in Daniels' upcoming The Paperboy, star in the movie as the title character. It turns out that Oyelowo won't be playing the lead, however, as that part has gone to a different actor, but he will indeed be a part of the production.

According to Variety, Forest Whitaker has signed on to play Eugene Allen, a White House butler who served under eight U.S. presidents, while Oyelowo will play the butler's son. Also, while the casting of Jackman, Kunis and Cusack is still up in the air, Oprah is now in talks to play Allen's wife. Described as Daniels' passion project, the filmmaker wrote the script along with Danny Strong, who was recently hired to adapt Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol. The trade says that they are still going after the previously mentioned A-list talent as the plan is to set the movie up like Steven Spielberg's upcoming Lincoln, with a series of famous actors portraying famous people (the previous report said that Cusack would play Richard Nixon while Kunis would portray Jackie Kennedy).

I must say that the casting of Whitaker as Allen makes a hell of a lot more sense than Oyelowo - leading me to believe that the first report had a few of its facts wrong. If Oprah Winfrey, who recently turned 58 years old, was being looked at to play Allen's wife, why would they cast Oyelowo, who is only 35. Whitaker is a much more age appropriate choice and from a talent perspective, a great one in general.

It has been a long time since Oprah Winfrey last appeared in a movie. Sure, she has lent her notable voice to films like Charlotte's Web, Bee Movie and The Princess and the Frog, but the last time that she appeared in a feature was the 1998 Jonathan Demme film Beloved. Perhaps she's getting the acting bug again or she is just bored with counting her money, but now it looks like that streak may break.

According to THR, Oprah is currently thinking about taking a role in Lee Daniels' next film, The Butler. At this stage, no deals have been made and it is simply a possibility. The film tells the story of Eugene Allen, a butler who worked at the White House from 1952 to 1986, serving under a total of eight presidents. The trade says that Hugh Jackman, Mila Kunis and John Cusack have all been considered for roles and Daniels wants David Oyelowo to play the eponymous character. Should she take the part, Oprah would play Allen's wife, while Kunis would play Jackie Kennedy and Cusack would portray Richard Nixon (the role for Hugh Jackman is unspecified).

When you think about the fact that Oprah Winfrey was never trained as an actress, her talent level is quite surprising. In addition to Beloved, she starred in such films as The Color Purple, and 1986's Native Son. More than anything at this point in her career it would just be interesting to see her back on the big screen.

I love a good retro poster. While most studios are content producing identical posters over and over again (floating heads, blue and orange contrast, etc.), films that reach back to when movie posters were actually an artform are much appreciated. Sadly they're few and far between, but today the folks behind Lee Daniels' next film have delivered a late-Christmas/early-New Year's present for us.

The Film Stage has received the first poster for The Paperboy, Daniels' first film since the Oscar-winning Precious in 2009. Check it out below or full size over there.

Starring Zac Efron, Matthew McConaughey, John Cusack, and Nicole Kidman, The Paperboy is about a reporter who goes back to his hometown in Florida and teams up with his younger brother to prove the innocence of a man on death row. Things start to go pear shaped, however, when the younger brother begins to have a relationship with a woman that the convict has been corresponding with. The film is based on the novel by Peter Dexter (who also wrote the screenplay) and while the movie doesn't have a release date yet, it's expected to arrive sometime in 2012.

Casting “what if” stories fascinate me. What would Back to the Future have looked like with Eric Stoltz in for Michael J. Fox? Could Dougray Scott have done a better job as Wolverine than Hugh Jackman? And my favorite – Tom Selleck as Indiana Jones!

But here’s one I haven’t heard before, and it raises several questions: Did you know that American Idol contestant and eventual Oscar nominee Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls) was offered the lead role in Lee Daniels’ Precious, but turned it down? The singer-actress reveals that poor career choice in her latest book, I Got This: How I Changed My Ways and Lost What Weighed Me Down (according to Uptown Magazine). At the time, Hudson was coming off the grueling Dreamgirls press circuit, which traditionally accompanies an Oscar run, and was told by the Precious director that she’d have to pack on additional pounds to play the abused teenager.

“I had done that with [her Dreamgirls character] Effie … and as much as I was moved by this film, I wanted to try a role that had nothing whatsoever to do with my weight,” she said.

So instead, she contributed to a Sex and the City movie, while Daniels’ film earned six Oscar nominations and two wins for screenwriting and Best Supporting Actress. Which begs the questions: Would Hudson’s appearance have changed anything? Was Precious always going to hinge on the casting of Precious’ malicious mother (Mo’Nique, who was terrifying)? And will Hudson ever get another role of that caliber? She recently played Winnie Mandela opposite Terrence Howard, though that film scored little traction at TIFF. And now she’ll be in a Three Stooges movie. Yikes.

Either way, Gabourey Sidibe – who earned an Oscar nomination for playing Precious – should send Hudson gift baskets on an annual basis for turning Daniels down. Just make sure they are loaded with fat-free treats.

Jacqueline Susann’s oft-adapted 1966 novel Valley of the Dolls is heading back into the showbiz thresher once again. This time it’s being adapted into a potential series for NBC. Deadline reports that the man at the helm is Precious director Lee Daniels, who will write, direct, and exec produce for NBC and 20th Century Fox TV. Also exec producing will be Katherine Pope and Chernin Entertainment.

The original novel version of Valley of the Dolls tells a multi-decade story of three friends -- a Broadway talent agent, a vaudeville star, and a showgirl -- as their lives and showbiz careers intertwine. Lest the innocent-sounding title fool you, the “dolls” refers to a slang term for sleeping pills. If you’re guessing that might have unsavory implications for the three friends, you wouldn’t be off target. While a modern update certainly wouldn’t be unprecedented, Deadline’s story claims that it will be a period project -- not surprising given the current fad of shows such as Mad Men, Pan Am, and The Playboy Club. Whether the show will hit the air before people tire of that trend remains to be seen…

This will be the fourth time Valley of the Dolls has been adapted over the past four and a half decades. It was a movie in the ‘60s, a miniseries in the ‘80s, and a soap opera in the ‘90s. If this trend keeps up, expect it to become a web serial in 2015 and an airborne fictional info-feed vapor around 2027 (part of NBC’s “Must Sniff TV”).